COVID-19: Analysis of Personal Protective Equipment Costs in the First Quarter of 2020 at a Philanthropic Hospital in Southern Bahia- Brazil

Abstract

In December 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) was alerted to an increase in cases of pneumonia in the city of Wuhan in China, confirming that it was a respiratory infection caused by a new strain of coronavirus, previously unknown in humans. COVID-19, a disease caused by the coronavirus-SARS-CoV2, was declared pandemic by the WHO in March 2020, due to its rapid worldwide spread. The form of transmission of the disease occurs through droplets disseminated in the air, orally-fecally or by fomites. Studies show that the nosocomial spread of the virus may be responsible for the increase in the number of cases in some countries, which makes the use of individual protection equipment the measure of greater control of nosocomial infection. However, the increase in the consumption of these inputs in an indiscriminate manner can cause an unsustainable financial impact for hospital institutions. The purpose of this study is to show the partial results of the analysis of the costs of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in a philanthropic hospital in the inland city of Bahia, after the beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic. The results drew attention to the 33.13% increase in the hospital cost with personal protective equipment in the first quarter of 2020, which raises a concern regarding the institution's financial difficulty in maintaining the supply of these supplies.