Ind Health . Characteristics of COVID-19 infection clusters occurring among workers in several Asia-Pacific countries

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Ind Health


. 2022 Jan 12.
doi: 10.2486/indhealth.2021-0227. Online ahead of print.
Characteristics of COVID-19 infection clusters occurring among workers in several Asia-Pacific countries


Mila Tejamaya ¹ , Wantanee Phanprsit ² , Jiwon Kim ³ , Feng-Jen Tsai ⁴ , Go Muto ⁵ , Derek Miller ⁶ , Alex Reginald ⁷ , Nelia Granadillos ⁸ , Carmela Capule ⁹ , Marina Bt Zainal Farid ¹⁰ , Yu-Wen Lin ¹¹ , Jihoon Park ¹² , Ruey-Yu Chen ¹³ , Kyong Hui Lee ¹⁴ , Jeongim Park ¹⁵ , Haruo Hashimoto ¹⁶ , Haesong Kwon ¹⁷ , Chungsik Yoon ¹⁸ , Chantana Padungtod ¹⁹ , Elsye As Safira ²⁰ , Dong-Uk Park ³



Affiliations

• PMID: 35022363
• DOI: 10.2486/indhealth.2021-0227

Abstract

The types of workplaces and occupations with coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) clusters vary between countries and periods. We aimed to characterize major occupational groups with mass outbreaks of COVID-19 infections in several Asia-Pacific countries. Data on the major occupations or workplaces reporting COVID-19 cases in workplaces from January 2020 to July 2021 was collected from industrial hygiene professionals in nine countries. The proportion of workers accounted for 39.1 to 56.6% of the population in each country. The number of workers covered in the national statistics varies among nations based on their definition of a worker. None of the countries examined here have systematically collected occupational data on COVID-19 illnesses and deaths classified by type of industry, occupation, or job. Most countries experienced COVID-19 clusters among health and social care workers (HSCW) in hospitals or long-term care facilities. The types of occupations or workplaces with virus clusters in some participating countries included prisons, call centers, workplaces employing immigrants, garment facilities, grocery stores, and the military, which differed among countries, except for a few common occupations such as HSCW and those populated by immigrants. Further study is necessary in order to seek ways to control infection risks, including revisions to industrial-health-related laws.

Keywords: Asian Network of Occupational Hygiene (ANOH); COVID-19; Infection; Occupation virus cluster; Workplace.