Construction and validation of an algorithm for disinfection of ambulances transporting patients with contagious infectious diseases.
Geraldo Magela Salomé
PMID 36449962WHAT IT FOUND
Frontline nurses, physicians and physical therapists agreed on a step-by-step ambulance cleaning and disinfection algorithm, reaching 99.8% agreement after review.
The study did not test whether the algorithm prevents infection.
Key findings
01A panel of 104 frontline nurses, physicians and physical therapists rated the ambulance cleaning and disinfection algorithm.
02After corrections, the second rating round reached 99.8% agreement and the panel considered the algorithm validated.
03The algorithm lists steps for putting on and removing personal protective equipment, materials, driver cabin disinfection, equipment disinfection, and ambulance cleaning and washing.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The judges were selected by snowball sampling, so they may not represent all frontline transport professionals. The panel consisted of nurses, physicians and physical therapists with specialist, master or PhD qualifications; nursing technicians and assistants were not included. The study measured agreement with the algorithm's content, not whether it reduces contamination or infection. The algorithm was built from 16 articles, so its content depends on the sources selected.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the 99.8% agreement as proof that the algorithm prevents infection. The study only asked experts to rate the content of the cleaning and disinfection steps.