https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200406112526.htm

The Stanford algorithm is based on the urgency of the procedure, potential for aerosolization and release of virus droplets at the surgical site, and evidence that a patient has been infected. The algorithm aligns with the goals of the ACS Statement on PPE Shortages during the COVID-19 Pandemic, released April 1, 2020.

"We developed institutional guidelines based on how soon the surgical cases needed to be performed, the patient's condition, the risk that a surgeon would access an area of body where the amount of virus could be high, and the risk that a patient could be infected with COVID-19," said Joseph Forrester, MD, MSc, an assistant professor in general surgery and lead author of the algorithm article. Dr. Forrester was a field agent in Liberia during the 2014 Ebola outbreak where he conducted several investigations of the Ebola burden and preparedness as an Epidemic Intelligence Service officer with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.