CDC Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity

Laboratory Alert: FDA Issues Safety Communication About Risk of False Results with the Curative SARS-CoV-2 Test for COVID-19 On January 4, 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a safety communication about the risk of false-negative results with the Curative SARS-CoV-2 test for COVID-19. To reduce the risk of false-negative results, the test should be performed according to the instructions for use. Refer to the safety communication for more specific guid...ance, and please share this message with your partners and colleagues who perform testing for SARS-CoV-2. FDA encourages stakeholders to report adverse events or suspected adverse events, including problems with test performance or results, through MedWatch, the FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting program. Please direct any questions to the FDA Division of Industry and Consumer Education (DICE) at [email protected]. For further information, please visit https://www.cdc.gov//fda_issues_safety_communication_about

Healthcare professionals, we invite you to join us for the next CDC COCA Call in the COVID-19 series: COVID-19 Vaccines: Update on Allergic Reactions, Contraindications, and Precautions When: Wednesday, December 30, 2020 Time: 2PM - 3PM EST... During this COCA call, presenters will give an overview of recommendations for using COVID-19 vaccines in certain populations. Clinicians will also learn more about the recent reports of anaphylaxis following vaccination and CDC’s updated clinical considerations around contraindications and precautions to vaccination. Advanced registration is not required. For complete details, please visit https://emergency.cdc.gov/co/calls/2020/callinfo_123020.asp

Official CDC Health Alert Network (HAN) Advisory 438: Increase in Fatal Drug Overdoses Across the United States Driven by Synthetic Opioids Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Summary The purpose of this Health Alert Network (HAN) Advisory is to alert public health departments, healthcare professionals, first responders, harm reduction organizations, laboratories, and medical examiners and coroners to (1) substantial increases in drug overdose deaths across the United St...ates, primarily driven by rapid increases in overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids excluding methadone (hereafter referred to as synthetic opioids), likely illicitly manufactured fentanyl; (2) a concerning acceleration of the increase in drug overdose deaths, with the largest increase recorded from March 2020 to May 2020, coinciding with the implementation of widespread mitigation measures for the COVID-19 pandemic; (3) the changing geographic distribution of overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids, with the largest percentage increases occurring in states in the western United States; (4) significant increases in overdose deaths involving psychostimulants with abuse potential (hereafter referred to as psychostimulants) such as methamphetamine; and (5) recommendations for communities when responding to the evolving overdose crisis. Read more by visiting https://emergency.cdc.gov/han/2020/han00438.asp

We invite the clinical community to join us for the next COCA Call in the COVID-19 series: What Clinicians Need to Know About the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 Vaccines. When: Friday, December 18 Time: 2PM - 3PM EST... Please visit https://emergency.cdc.gov/co/calls/2020/callinfo_121820.asp

Healthcare professionals, we invite you to join us for an upcoming COCA Call in the COVID-19 series. Topic: Leveraging Existing Resources to Meet the Challenges Faced by People Who Use Drugs or Who Have Substance Use Disorders During the COVID-19 Pandemic Date: Thursday, October 22, 2020... Time: 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM ET Free Continuing Education (CE) will be offered. Learn more by visiting: https://emergency.cdc.gov/co/calls/2020/callinfo_102220.asp

OFFICIAL CDC Health Advisory (HAN) 437: Hurricane Delta--Clinical Guidance for Carbon Monoxide (CO) Poisoning High winds and heavy rain from Hurricane Delta will begin affecting the Gulf Coast around October 9, 2020. Those who may lose power may turn to alternate power sources such as gasoline generators and may use propane or charcoal grills for cooking. If used or placed improperly, these sources can lead to CO build up inside buildings, garages, or campers and poison the p...eople and animals inside. CDC is reminding healthcare professionals seeing patients from the areas affected by Hurricane Delta to maintain a high index of suspicion for carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. Other people who may be exposed to the same CO source may need to be identified and evaluated. CO poisoning can be fatal and children, pregnant women, the unborn, persons with sickle cell disease, older adults, and persons with chronic illness (e.g., heart or lung disease) are particularly high risk. For further information, including clinical manifestations and recommendations for clinicians, please visit https://emergency.cdc.gov/han/2020/han00437.asp See more

OFFICIAL CDC Health Advisory (HAN) 436: Recent HIV Clusters and Outbreaks Across the United States Among People Who Inject Drugs and Considerations During the COVID-19 Pandemic Since 2015, CDC and health departments across the United States have identified several HIV clusters and outbreaks occurring predominantly among people who inject drugs. Long-term declining trends in HIV incidence among people who inject drugs have stalled. This HAN alerts public health departments and... healthcare providers to the possibility of new injection-related HIV infections and outbreaks. It also provides guidance for preventing, identifying, and responding to HIV among people who inject drugs and provides considerations for delivering services in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. For more information, please visit https://emergency.cdc.gov/han/2020/han00436.asp See more

Healthcare providers, we invite you to join us for an upcoming COCA Call in the COVID-19 series. Topic: Testing and Treatment of 2020-2021 Seasonal Influenza During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Date: Thursday, September 17, 2020... Time: 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM EDT Free Continuing Education (CE) will be offered. Learn more by visiting: https://emergency.cdc.gov/co/calls/2020/callinfo_091720.asp

Please join us for the next COCA Call in the COVID-19 series: Telehealth & Health Equity: Considerations for Addressing Health Disparities during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Free Continuing Education (CE) will be offered. Date: Tuesday, September 15, 2020 Time: 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM ET... To learn more, visit: https://emergency.cdc.gov/co/calls/2020/callinfo_091520.asp

OFFICIAL CDC HAN ADVISORY 435: Hurricane Laura--Clinical Guidance for Carbon Monoxide (CO) Poisoning CDC is reminding clinicians seeing patients from the areas affected by Hurricane Laura to maintain a high index of suspicion for CO poisoning. The signs and symptoms of CO exposure are variable and nonspecific. A tension-type headache is the most common symptom of mild CO poisoning. Other symptoms may include dizziness, general malaise without a fever, drowsiness, chest pain,... and altered mental status. For further information, please read the HAN in its entirety by visiting https://emergency.cdc.gov/han/2020/han00435.asp

Healthcare providers, we cordially invite you to join us for the next COCA Call in the COVID-19 series. The topic for this webinar will be: 2020-2021 Influenza Vaccination Recommendations and Clinical Guidance during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Free Continuing Education (CE) will be offered. Date: Thursday, August 20, 2020 Time: 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM ET... Learn more by visting: https://emergency.cdc.gov/co/calls/2020/callinfo_082020.asp

Healthcare providers urged to collect demographic information when ordering COVID-19 laboratory tests. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and the HHS Laboratory Data Reporting Guidance (https://www.hhs.gov//covid-19-laboratory-data-reporting-gu) released on June 4, 2020 require every COVID-19 testing site to report specific data elements for every diagnostic and screening test performed to detect SARS-CoV-2 or to diagnose a possible case of COVID-19 (e.g., molecular, antigen, antibody). For questions or to request more information on this HHS laboratory reporting requirement, please contact [email protected].

COCA is pleased to to promote this webinar sponsored by our partners at ACMT (American College of Medical Toxicology) and ENA (Emergency Nurses Association). *Please note, this is not a COCA Call. All inquiries should be directed to ACMT.* Dr. Eili Klein, PhD, MA mathematical ecologist and epidemiologist from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine will discuss how the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and the ensuing COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in extraordinary impacts on hospital systems ar...ound the world and how epidemiolgical modeling has played an important role in shaping policy responses and in aiding hospitals in preparation for surges of patients. In addition, Dr. Minerva A.Romero Arenas, MD, MPH from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Edinburg, TX, will provide an overview of the Rio Grande Valley, including a background on socioeconomic disparities that have been highlighted by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Title: Epidemiological Modeling of the Impact of COVID-19 on Hospital Systems Date: Weds., Aug. 12, 2020 Time: 3 PM - 4 PM EDT Please register in advance for this free webinar by visiting: https://bit.lyC19modeling **Please note: this is not a COCA Call. All inquiries should be directed to ACMT.**

Dental settings have unique characteristics that warrant specific infection control considerations. As dental healthcare facilities begin to restart elective procedures in accordance with guidance from local and state officials, there are precautions that should remain in place as a part of the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic. On August 4, 2020, CDC updated its Guidance for Dental Settings that complements CDC's Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Patients with Suspected or Confirmed Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Healthcare Settings and Framework for Healthcare Systems Providing Non-COVID-19 Clinical Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic. For further info., please visit: bit.ly/2Du9IbX

Serious Adverse Health Events, Including Death, Associated with Ingesting Alcohol-Based Hand Sanitizers Containing Methanol -- Arizona and New Mexico, May - June 2020 Alcohol-based hand sanitizers should only contain ethanol or isopropanol, but some products imported into the United States have been found to contain methanol. From May 1 through June 30, 2020, 15 cases of methanol poisoning associated with swallowing alcohol-based hand sanitizers were were reported in Arizona... and New Mexico. Four patients died and three were discharged with visual impairment. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer products should never be ingested. In patients with compatible signs and symptoms or after swallowing hand sanitizer, prompt evaluation for methanol poisoning is required. Health departments in all states should coordinate with poison centers to identify cases of methanol poisoning. Read more: bit.ly/MMWR8520.

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) is a rare but severe condition that has been reported approximately 2-4 weeks after the onset of COVID-19 in children and adolescents. Most cases of MIS-C have features of shock, with cardiac involvement, gastrointestinal symptoms, and significantly elevated markers of inflammation, with positive laboratory test results for SARS-CoV-2. Of the 565 patients who underwent SARS-CoV-2 testing, all had a positive test result by... RT-PCR or serology. Distinguishing MIS-C from other severe infectious or inflammatory conditions poses a challenge to clinicians caring for children and adolescents. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to expand in many jurisdictions, healthcare provider awareness of MIS-C will facilitate early recognition, early diagnosis, and prompt treatment. Read more findings here: bit.ly/2PAdOBD

Register for the American Hospital Association Living Learning Network Micro-Learning Session with NYU Langone Hospital-Brooklyn, August 6, 2020, 1 PM EST! During this 45-minute session, participants will have an opportunity to learn from the experiences of NYU Langone Hospital-Brooklyn as New York became the epicenter of the COVID-19 crisis. Register here: https://events-na12.adobeconnect.com//event_registration.h