|
Title |
Development of a risk assessment tool
for contact tracing people after contact
with infectious patients while travelling
by bus or other public ground transport:
a Delphi consensus approach |
Author(s) |
Oliver Mohr, Julia Hermes,Susanne B Schink, et al - Personal Name
|
Subject |
Public Health |
Publisher |
British Medical Journal |
Publishing Year |
2013 |
Specific Detail Info |
Background: Tracing persons who have been in
contact with an infectious patient may be very effective
in preventing the spread of communicable diseases.
However, criteria to decide when to conduct contact
tracing are not well established. We have investigated
the available evidence for contact tracing with a focus
on public ground transport aiming to give guidance in
what situations contact tracing should be considered.
Methods: Relevant infectious diseases suitable for
contact tracing in ground transport and a set of
disease-specific epidemiological criteria were defined
through literature search and structured multistep
expert consultations. We developed continuous scales
for each criterion to be rated for its relevance to
contact tracing in ground transport. We used the
Delphi method with an international expert panel to
position the values of criteria on the respective scales.
Results: The study led to the development of the
‘Contact Tracing-Risk Assessment Profile’ (CT-RAP),
a decision-making instrument, taking into account
pathogen-specific as well as situation-specific criteria.
This report describes the methodology of this
instrument and presents two examples of ready-to-use
CT-RAP for tuberculosis and for meningococcal
disease in public ground transport.
Discussion: The systematic and transparent use of
the CT-RAP for tuberculosis and meningococcal
disease is likely to facilitate reasonable, efficient and
user-friendly decisions with respect to contact tracing.
New CT-RAPs for additional pathogens and different
settings such as schools and kindergartens are being
planned. |
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