CODE BLUE-19: A proposed protocol to mitigate covid-19 transmission in the emergency department when receiving out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients

Abstract

Resuscitation of cardiac arrest in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients places the healthcare staff at higher risk of exposure to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Unfortunately, COVID-19 status is unknown in most patients presenting to the emergency department (ED), and therefore special attention must be given to protect the healthcare staff along with the other patients. This is particularly true for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients who are transported to the ED. Based on the current data available on transmissibility of SARSCoV-2, we have proposed a protocolized approach to out-of-hospital cardiac arrests to limit risk of transmission.