An outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) started in December 2019 in China and was declared a pandemic on 11.03.2020 by WHO. Italy is one of the most afflicted Country by this epidemic with 136,110 confirmed cases and 16,654 deaths on 9.4.2020 (at the same date, the Ministry of Health was reporting 143,626 cases). During these few months the National Health Service have made a great effort to cope with the increasing request of intensive care beds and all the elective activities in hospital have been suspended. Data from the different Italian regions shows different patterns of positive and dead for this syndrome. Moreover, striking differences of the observed lethality of the infections among different areas were immediately evident from the epidemic reports. It will be of critical relevance to understand the expected evolution of the first lock-down phase, driving the exhaustion of the Covid-19 outbreak.(www.actabiomedica.it).

Background: Despite recommendations, the influenza vaccination coverage rate in healthcare workers (HCWs) in Italy is far from the recommended target. The aim of the study is to analyze the influenza vaccination campaign performed in 2019 in a research and teaching hospital in Milan. Methods: The vaccination strategy included an ad hoc ambulatory, as in the previous years, and an onsite ambulatory, introduced for the first time. Personal data and professional categories were collected and analyzed using univariate logistic regression. HCWs who refused the vaccination were asked to fill in a questionnaire to explain their reasons for dissent. Results: The achieved vaccination coverage rate (VCR) for HCWs was 21.5 %, compared to 17.1% in 2018. The lowest VCR was registered among nurses (11.9%), while physicians had the highest VCR (40.7%). Prevalence ratios show that some professional categories were more frequently vaccinated for the first time than attending physicians (reference category); those with statistically significant confidence intervals were nurses (PR: 2.42; 95% CI: 1.78–3.28), residents (PR: 1.85; 95% CI: 1.36–2.53), and auxiliary staff (PR: 2.33; 95% CI: 1.45–3.74). Conclusions: An onsite vaccination strategy failed in providing a remarkable increase in VCR in 2019, but it is important to point out that the campaign was influenced by several logistic problems.

The Coronavirus Disease 19 epidemic is an infectious disease which was declared as a pandemic and hit all the Countries, all over the world, from the beginning of the year 2020. Despite the emergency vigilance plans, in all the Countries, Health Systems experienced a different ratio of lethality, admissions to intensive care units and managing quarantine of positive patients. The aim of this study is to investigate if some health indicators might have been useful to understand the capacity of Italian National Health Service to manage the COVID 19 epidemic. We will compare data in two different Italian regions in the Northern part of Italy (Lombardy and Veneto) with the national data to understand if different health strategies might be significant to explain different patterns of COVID 19 epidemic in Italy. The two regions have two different health policies to face CoViD-2019 epidemic. To face epidemic like this one the answer should be outside hospitals but this means to have general practitioners well-trained and enough healthcare personnel working outside hospitals.