Facility Design Affects COVID-19 Infection Control

Although facility managers may consider caring for a single building easier than maintaining a complex of buildings, there is one complication they may not realize. An analysis of 757 long-term care facilities in 11 different countries found COVID-19 infection rates were significantly higher in single-site facilities compared to those with small, detached buildings, McKnights Long-Term Care News reports.

Researchers at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia examined data from long-term care centers housing more than 90,000 residents and 6,500 staff members. They found the overall COVID-19 infection rate among residents was approximately 42%, and 21.7% for staff. However, infection rates in stand-alone, single buildings were responsible for twice the infection rates.

Approximately 50% of residents in the single buildings contracted COVID-19, compared to 26% of residents in facilities with multiple buildings. The findings lead researchers to conclude that nursing home complexes should be designed with smaller sized facilities that allow adequate space for social distancing.

The researchers’ conclusions are similar to those found in a study last year which revealed that residents of small-home long-term care centers faced significantly lower rates of COVID-19 and mortality from the infection than those of traditional single building centers. The single-home centers typically had less than 50 beds.