exposure risk assessment and management of pre-hospital paramedics during the covid-19 pandemic

Background: pre-hospital paramedics providing immediate care to patients with contagious disease are at a high risk of infection. this study aimed to assess the exposure risk and risk management practices of pre-hospital paramedics during the covid-19 pandemic. materials and methods: a cross-sectional study was conducted among 335 paramedics from 49 emergency medical stations in two cities located in northwestern of iran, who were recruited through census. data were collected using a world health organization (who) questionnaire to assess the covid-19 exposure risk among health workers.results: the results showed that the highest risk of exposure (86.0%) was in the domain of occupational exposure, and 55.2% of paramedics were at high risk of exposure to covid-19. among paramedics, 95.2% used personal protective equipment (ppe) when caring for patients and 93.1% when performing aerosol-generating procedures. conclusion: a significant number of pre-hospital paramedics were found to be at high exposure risk to covid-19 during ambulance missions. therefore, adherence to contact and droplet precautions, implementation of airborne precautions during aerosol-generating procedures, access to appropriate ppe, proper use of ppe, and participation in appropriate training courses may lead to improved exposure risk management and enhance their safety.