COVID-19 outbreaks at shelters for women who are victims of gender-based violence from Ecuador

BACKGROUND: One of the constraints in containing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Ecuador is limited testing capacity, especially in high-risk populations such as people living in humanitarian shelters. OBJECTIVES: The “United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees” office in Ecuador in collaboration with “Universidad de Las Américas” performed surveillance screening at shelters for women victims of gender-based violence. They had been granted access to RT-qPCR tests for SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis since July 2020, a few weeks after the general population lockdown was lifted. RESULTS: From 411 people tested, 52 tests were SARS-CoV-2 positive, yielding an overall high attack rate of 12.65%. Moreover, COVID-19 outbreaks were found in nine of 11 shelters that were included in the study. While attacks rates varied among shelters, no association was found with occupancy. CONCLUSION: This study is key to clarifying the epidemiological situation in this highly vulnerable population in Latin America. It highlights the importance of mass testing beyond the symptomatic population to prevent the spread of COVID-19.