Systematic evaluation of infection control measures
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This priority project is providing knowledge concerning the effects of key infection control measures in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Population-based measures to control infection have been pivotal to the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost every country in the world has introduced extensive packages of infection control measures, including Norway.
Many infection control measures entail large negative consequences, i.e. they cause specific negative effects on health and welfare. In order to assess which measures are prudent to introduce, it is crucial to know more about both the effectiveness of the measures as well as other consequences, but the knowledge that is available concerning this issue is currently limited.
About the priority project
This project will provide knowledge concerning the effects of key public health measures for infection control for the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
We will seek to carry out systematic evaluations of the effects of selected measures such as infection control measures in schools, universities and colleges, face masks, testing and quarantine. Measures will be selected following an assessment of knowledge gaps and the opportunities that become available for effectiveness evaluations.
Knowledge from the project will be utilised to advise the health services and authorities regarding how new measures can be aligned and implemented, both in terms of infection control and to enable the consequences of the control measures to be retrospectively evaluated using reliable methods. The project also aims to strengthen research into infection control measures in Norway, partly through collaboration with other specialist communities.
The aim of the priority project is to ensure that experimental or quasi-experimental studies are carried out concerning the effects of infection control measures, and that research protocols are prepared which can be implemented as and when necessary, such as in the event of an increase in infection rates. This work is rooted in the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, but we will also seek to establish cooperation with external partners.
The project is linked to the country’s leading infection control experts at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, which has a pivotal role in the management of COVID-19 in Norway. Another advantage of basing the project at the institute is access to methodological expertise in experimental and quasi-experimental research. In addition, researchers at the institute have both the necessary access and the ability to handle rich registry data, such as that in Norwegian Pandemic Registry (BeredtC19).
Projects and activities
- Campus & the coronavirus study
- Adherence to restrictions in social gathering size to curb the spread of SARS-CoV-19 (Campus & coronavirus sub-study)
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Contact Atle Fretheim