Building Clinical Care Capacity for Patients With Special Pathogens in Advance of the Next Outbreak.

In response to the growing number of outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases, the US Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) has embarked on a plan to improve and expand special pathogen patient care capabilities. To achieve this, ASPR is developing a coordinated network of Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Centers (RESPTCs) to serve as state-of-the-art facilities staffed by a highly trained workforce to care for and manage special pathogen patients across the lifespan. The RESPTC network represents the operational arm of a broader US National Special Pathogen System of care to prevent and prepare for the next infectious disease outbreak.

Creation and impact of containment units with high-risk zones during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Background: The rapid spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) required swift preparation to protect healthcare personnel (HCP) and patients, especially considering shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE). Due to the lack of a pre-existing biocontainment unit, we needed to develop a novel approach to placing patients in isolation cohorts while working with the pre-existing physical space.

Objectives: To prevent disease transmission to non-COVID-19 patients and HCP caring for COVID-19 patients, to optimize PPE usage, and to provide a comfortable and safe working environment.

Morphological characters in light of new molecular phylogenies: the caudal-fin skeleton of Ovalentaria.

The Ovalentaria is a taxon of teleosts that has been proposed based on molecular analyses only. Previously widely separated families are assembled in this taxon. For the first time, the Ovalentaria are analysed using a comparative morphological approach.