Publications by authors named "Catherine Espinosa"

Access to ancillary services-including HIV support services, non-HIV clinical services, and subsistence services-can support care engagement and viral suppression and reduce disparities among people with HIV (PWH). We used representative U.S.

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  • Angola reported its first poliomyelitis case in six years, involving circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2), with a total of 141 cases across the country from 2019 to 2020, particularly in Luanda, Cuanza Sul, and Huambo.
  • The spread of cVDPV2 followed five distinct genetic emergence groups linked to earlier cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with a peak of 15 cases occurring in October 2019.
  • Despite challenges in surveillance due to the COVID-19 pandemic, by May 2021, evidence indicated that Angola had successfully interrupted cVDPV2 transmission, but improvements in surveillance and response measures were needed for any future outbreaks.
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Since 2013, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has offered the Public Health Emergency Management Fellowship to health professionals from around the world. The goal of this program is to build an international workforce to establish public health emergency management programs and operations centers in participating countries. In March 2021, all 141 graduates of the fellowship program were invited to complete a web survey designed to examine their job roles and functions, assess their contributions to their country's COVID-19 response, and identify needs for technical assistance to strengthen national preparedness and response systems.

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We aimed to describe frequency of COVID-19 exposure risk factors among patients presenting for medical care at an urban, public hospital serving mostly uninsured/Medicare/Medicaid clients and risk factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Consenting, adult patients seeking care at a public hospital from August to November 2020 were enrolled in this cross-sectional investigation. Saliva, anterior nasal and nasopharyngeal swabs were collected and tested for SARS-CoV-2 using RT-PCR.

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Self-collected specimens can expand access to SARS-CoV-2 testing. At a large inner-city hospital 1,082 participants self-collected saliva and anterior nasal swab (ANS) samples before healthcare workers collected nasopharyngeal swab (NPS) samples on the same day. To characterize patient preferences for self-collection, this investigation explored ability, comfort, and ease of ANS and saliva self-collection for SARS-CoV-2 testing along with associated patient characteristics, including medical history and symptoms of COVID-19.

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Background: There is a continuing risk for COVID-19 transmission in school settings while transmission is ongoing in the community, particularly among unvaccinated populations. To ensure that schools continue to operate safely and to inform implementation of prevention strategies, it is imperative to gain better understanding of the risk behaviors of staff and students. This secondary analysis describes the prevalence of COVID-19 risk behaviors in an exposed population of students and school staff in the pre-vaccine era and identifies associations between these behaviors and testing positive for SARS-CoV-2.

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We evaluated the performance of self-collected anterior nasal swab (ANS) and saliva samples compared with healthcare worker-collected nasopharyngeal swab specimens used to test for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We used the same PCR diagnostic panel to test all self-collected and healthcare worker-collected samples from participants at a public hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Among 1,076 participants, 51.

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  • A study in a Georgia public school district analyzed how SARS-CoV-2 spreads among students and staff to help develop prevention strategies.
  • During the study from December 2020 to January 2021, investigators identified 86 infected individuals and assessed over 1,100 of their close contacts, finding an 8.7% positivity rate among tested contacts.
  • The findings revealed that indoor sports activities were the highest risk settings for transmission, underscoring the importance of staff vaccinations and proactive testing to mitigate spread, especially as many infected individuals showed no symptoms.
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  • * A CDC study conducted in 20 elementary schools in Salt Lake County found that, despite significant community COVID-19 cases, the transmission rate in schools was low, with only 0.7% of susceptible school contacts testing positive for the virus.
  • * High mask usage (86%) and a minimum 3-foot distance between students contributed to the low transmission rates, suggesting that safe in-person learning is possible when effective prevention measures are in place.
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Objectives: To identify factors contributing to disproportionate rates of COVID-19 among Hispanic or Latino persons in Prince William Health District, Virginia, and to identify measures to better engage Hispanic and Latino communities in COVID-19 mitigation.

Methods: Data collection proceeded via three methods in June 2020: a quantitative survey of Hispanic or Latino residents, key informant interviews with local leaders familiar with this population, and focus group discussions with Hispanic or Latino community members.

Results: Those who worked outside the home, lived in larger households, or lived with someone who had tested positive were more likely to report testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 (unadjusted odds ratios of 2.

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