Resumption of the treatment of non-COVID-19 gynecologic patients after lifting lockdown: Triage and infection prevention experiences from Wuhan

Abstract

Aim: To share our experiences of resuming the treatments for gynecologic patients after lifting the lockdown in a hotspot area for the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Methods: The triage process used to resume medical activities for gynecologic patients at the Wuhan Union Hospital after a 76-day lockdown of the city is described, and its effectiveness in preventing COVID-19 nosocomial transmission is shown.

Results: Nonemergency patients were pretriaged based on their contact history and body temperature at an outpatient clinic, and negative COVID-19 screening test results were required for admission to the buffering rooms at the gynecologic department. The buffering lasted at least 3 days for symptom monitoring, and a second round of COVID-19 testing was required before patients could be transferred to the regular gynecologic wards. For patients who needed emergency surgery, the first screening was completed at the isolation wards after surgery, followed by buffering at the gynecologic department. We received 19 298 outpatient visits, admitted 326 patients, and performed 223 operations in the first 2 months after the lockdown was lifted. No COVID-19 cases occurred in the hospitalized patients, while the proportion of potentially high-risk patients with cancer and severe anemia was increased in comparison to that observed during the same period in 2019 and the first 2 months of 2020 before the lockdown.

Conclusions: We provide an effective triage system with buffering at two levels to guarantee safe and timely treatment for non-COVID-19 gynecologic patients in the postlockdown phase.

Keywords: buffering room; gynecologic surgery; pandemic; personal protective equipment; triage strategy.

FIGURE 1

The triage process used to triage non‐COVID‐19 gynecologic patients at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology