SARS-CoV-2 outbreak among staff and evacuees at Operation Allies Welcome Safe Havens

Jessica R Meeker; Lucas Gosdin; Allison Siu; Lauren Turner; Benjamin D Zusman; Katrin S Sadigh; Robert Carpenter; Stephanie Dopson; John Saindon; Nang Thu Thu Kyaw; Hannah E Segaloff; Nikki Pritchard; Andrea Shahum; Rana Traboulsi; Mary Claire Worrell; Catherine Beaucham; Pritesh Gandhi; Dean L Winslow; Lisa Rotz; Leisel Talley; Emily Mosites; Andrew T Boyd

doi:10.1111/phn.13227

SARS-CoV-2 outbreak among staff and evacuees at Operation Allies Welcome Safe Havens

Public Health Nurs. 2023 Sep-Oct;40(5):758-761. doi: 10.1111/phn.13227. Epub 2023 Jul 18.

Authors

Jessica R Meeker^{1

2

3}, Lucas Gosdin^{1

2}, Allison Siu^{1

2

3}, Lauren Turner⁴, Benjamin D Zusman^{5

6}, Katrin S Sadigh¹, Robert Carpenter⁷, Stephanie Dopson¹, John Saindon¹, Nang Thu Thu Kyaw^{1

2

3}, Hannah E Segaloff^{1

3

8}, Nikki Pritchard^{6

9}, Andrea Shahum⁶, Rana Traboulsi⁶, Mary Claire Worrell¹, Catherine Beaucham^{1

3}, Pritesh Gandhi¹⁰, Dean L Winslow¹¹, Lisa Rotz¹, Leisel Talley¹, Emily Mosites^{1

3}, Andrew T Boyd^{1

3}

Affiliations

¹ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia.
² Epidemic Intelligence Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia.
³ United States Public Health Service, Washington D.C.
⁴ Virginia Department of General Services Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services, Richmond, Virginia.
⁵ Department of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
⁶ International SOS, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey.
⁷ Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, Camp Pendleton, California.
⁸ Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Madison, Wisconsin.
⁹ Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command Portsmouth, Virginia.
¹⁰ Department of Homeland Security, Washington D.C.
¹¹ Division of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California.

Abstract

We report on five SARS-CoV-2 congregate setting outbreaks at U.S. Operation Allies Welcome Safe Havens/military facilities. Outbreak data were collected, and attack rates were calculated for various populations. Even in vaccinated populations, there was rapid spread, illustrating the importance of institutional prevention and mitigation policies in congregate settings.

Keywords: epidemic; evacuation; health behaviors; infectious diseases; refugees; respiratory infection; screening; vaccination.

Publication types

Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

COVID-19*
Disease Outbreaks / prevention & control
Health Facilities
Humans
SARS-CoV-2*

Grants and funding

CC999999/ImCDC/Intramural CDC HHS/United States