Safely opening our economy during the COVID-19 pandemic before vaccine availability

Dr. Dave On Call

In Episode 6 of Dr. Dave On Call, we discuss the fundamental tasks to safely open our economy in the COVID-19 pandemic before the availability of vaccines.

In addition to implementing physical distancing measures, we will need the necessary PPE (personal protective equipment) for employers to distribute to their employees. This includes masks (ie. surgical, N95), gloves and other job specific PPE. For example, a hairdresser/barber may need disposable capes to be used for every client, therefore, this specific equipment will needed to be made produced and available.

We will also need appropriate hand-washing stations with soap and hand-sanitizer needs to be available for all workers. This concept may seem obvious, however, there can be shortages in the supply chain to potentially disrupt workplace safety.

Next, we need to deploy a valid, Rapid COVID-19 test at a large scale. This would allow employers to test employees regularly to ensure daily safety in the workplace. The test would be a quick and non-invasive, either through a small sample of blood, swab or saliva. Results from this rapid test would be available within minutes to determine if an employee had COVID-19, and if so, appropriate measures could be implemented to secure the workplace environment.

For example, if an employee's Rapid COVID-19 test is positive, the employer must ensure that they self-isolate and receive the care they would need. If the employee cannot safely self-isolate at home, the employer could arrange a safe location (ie. hotel) to stay while self-isolating. The Rapid COVID-19 test must be valid, to ensure that if an employee tests positive, they truly have COVID-19 (true positive), and if an employee tests negative, they truly do NOT have COVID-19 (true negative).

We will also need a valid COVID-19 antibody test to help identify employees who have been exposed to COVID-19. Currently, we do NOT know the level of antibodies needed to be protective against COVID-19. Large population studies will be needed to determine the appropriate level of protection against COVID-19.

However, an COVID-19 antibody test could help an employer determine which employees are at higher risk of susceptibility. For example, assuming that COVID-19 antibodies are protective, we could identify those employees who are at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 (absence of COVID-19 antibodies). This could be helpful for employers who implement a work-from-home strategy. Employers could arrange for lower-risk employees to enter the work environment, while keeping higher-risk (ie COVID-19 antibody negative) employees at home. This strategy could also be implemented in a health-care setting, where COVID-19 antibody negative employees only work with non-COVID-19 patients.

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