The American College of Nuclear Medicine Guidance on Operating Procedures for a Nuclear Medicine Facility During COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The novel coronavirus 2 pandemic is causing widespread disruption in everyday life necessitating urgent and radical adaptations in operating procedures at nuclear medicine facilities. The potential for causing severe illness, COVID-19, calls for strict observance of preventive measures aimed to mitigate the spread of the virus. The threat of COVID-19 is particularly serious as there is no vaccine and no specific antiviral therapy. Further complications are introduced by shortages of personal protective equipment for healthcare workers who have direct contact with patients and effective testing to identify infected patients, raising the need for delaying some testing and therapies. Certain vulnerable segments of the general population have been identified (advanced age and certain comorbidities), which should heighten further their preventive efforts. Therefore, this guidance is intended to be operationalized depending on a facility’s specific needs and local disease prevalence.