Pathways for urology patients during the COVID-19 pandemic

Simonato, Alchiede; Giannarini, Gianluca; Abrate, Alberto; Bartoletti, Riccardo; Crestani, Alessandro; De Nunzio, Cosimo; Gregori, Andrea; Liguori, Giovanni; Novara, Giacomo; Pavan, Nicola; Trombetta, Carlo; Tubaro, Andrea; Porpiglia, Francesco; Ficarra, Vincenzo

The public health emergency caused by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in a significant reallocation of health resources with a consequent reorganization of the clinical activities also in several urological centers A panel of Italian urologists has agreed on a set of recommendations on pathways of pre-, intra- and post-operative care for urological patients undergoing urgent procedures or non-deferrable oncological interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic Simplification of the diagnostic and staging pathway has to be prioritized in order to reduce hospital visits and consequently the risk of contagion In absence of strict uniform regulations that impose the implementation of nasopharyngeal swabs, we recommend that an accurate triage for possible COVID-19 symptoms be performed both by telephone at home before hospitalization and at the time of hospitalization We recommend that during hospital stay patients should be provided with as many instructions as possible to facilitate their return to, and stay at, home Patients should be discharged under stable good conditions in order to minimize the risk of readmission It is advisable to reduce or reschedule post-discharge controls and implement an adequate system of communication for telemonitoring discharged patients in order to reduce hospital visits