This is the first edition of guidance on infection prevention and control (IPC) strategies for use when infection with a novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is suspected. It has been adapted from WHO’s Infection prevention and control during health care for probable or confirmed cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection,1 based on current knowledge of the situation in China and other countries where cases were identified and experiences with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV and MERS-CoV. 2
WHO will update these recommendations as new information becomes available.
This guidance is intended for healthcare workers (HCWs), healthcare managers and IPC teams at the facility level but it is also relevant for the national and district/provincial level. Full guidelines are available from WHO.2
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1 Infection prevention and control during health care for probable or confirmed cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection: interim guidance, updated October 2019. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2019 (WHO/MERS/IPC/15.1 Rev. 1; https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/174652, accessed 17 January 2020).
2 Infection prevention and control of epidemic- and pandemic-prone acute respiratory infections in health care: WHO guidelines. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2014 (hhttp://apps.who.int/iris/10665/112656, accessed 17 January 2020).
Answers & Comments
Explanation:
prevention
This is the first edition of guidance on infection prevention and control (IPC) strategies for use when infection with a novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is suspected. It has been adapted from WHO’s Infection prevention and control during health care for probable or confirmed cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection,1 based on current knowledge of the situation in China and other countries where cases were identified and experiences with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-CoV and MERS-CoV. 2
WHO will update these recommendations as new information becomes available.
This guidance is intended for healthcare workers (HCWs), healthcare managers and IPC teams at the facility level but it is also relevant for the national and district/provincial level. Full guidelines are available from WHO.2
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1 Infection prevention and control during health care for probable or confirmed cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection: interim guidance, updated October 2019. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2019 (WHO/MERS/IPC/15.1 Rev. 1; https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/174652, accessed 17 January 2020).
2 Infection prevention and control of epidemic- and pandemic-prone acute respiratory infections in health care: WHO guidelines. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2014 (hhttp://apps.who.int/iris/10665/112656, accessed 17 January 2020).