COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths in Belgian nursing homes: results of a surveillance conducted between April and December 2020

Table 1 Collected variables in the COVID-19 surveillance in Belgian nursing homes [16]

Date of registration
NH^a characteristics	- Name - Unique identification number - Postal code - Number of beds - Number of occupied beds (including beds occupied by hospitalized residents and short-stay residents) - Number of staff^b
Residents with confirmed or possible COVID-19 infection	- Number of newly reported confirmed/possible COVID-19 cases since the last reporting - Total number of confirmed/possible COVID-19 cases at the moment of registration
Hospitalizations of residents due to COVID-19	- Number of newly reported confirmed/possible COVID-19 cases admitted to a hospital since the last reporting
COVID-19 deaths among residents^c	Case-based data of deceased residents - Date of birth - Date of death - Gender - Method of diagnosis (lab-confirmed, computed tomography (CT thorax) confirmed, possible) - Place of death (NH, hospital, other)
Staff^b with confirmed or possible COVID-19 infections	- Number of newly reported confirmed/possible COVID-19 cases since the last reporting - Total number of confirmed/possible COVID-19 cases absent from work at the moment of registration (available since 12 May 2020 for all regions)

^aNursing homes (NHs) in Belgium can be defined as collective residences in which mainly older people, with different levels of disabilities and independence, are living on a long-term basis (usually until the end of their life). NHs offer a home substitute environment when care can no longer be adequately provided at home or with a short-term admission in a residential institution [17, 18]
^bAll personnel working in the facility, including nursing staff, paramedical staff, animation team, staff concerned with cleaning, maintenance or quality control, and NH managers and their administrative staff, but excluding students and volunteers
^cMore information on the methodology of the COVID-19 death surveillance can be found in Renard et al. [7]

ISSN: 2049-3258