Hygienic Recommendations for Food Service in Hospital Environments During COVID-19 Confinement: Scoping Review

Sebastián COFR�? J; Monserrat TOLOZA M; Pía PLACENCIA M; Leyla JURI C; Graciela ARG�?ELLO F

Author(s): SebastiÃ¡n COFRÃ? J, Monserrat TOLOZA M, PÃa PLACENCIA M, Leyla JURI C, Graciela ARGÃ?ELLO F

Objective: Explore the main hygienic measures for food services in hospital contexts during the period of the COVID19 pandemic.

Methods: A panoramic review of articles published between December 1, 2019, and October 30, 2020, was developed in the EMBASE and Pubmed/MEDLINE databases respectively. Studies reporting outcome measures such as hand washing, social distancing, food contamination, and surface disinfection were included as eligibility criteria.

Results: Based on the search strategy, 150 articles were identified, of which 10 research papers were incorporated into the analysis. The results show that the recommended hygienic measures such as hand washing, social distancing, and supervision in the handling of food are essential for the prevention of the spread of COVID-19, in-hospital food services.

Conclusions: The data analyzed shows the need for more scientific evidence to support the effects of the hygienic recommendations indicated to food services in hospital contexts. This study lays the foundations for future systematic reviews and meta-analysis for the main prevention measures established for health agencies.