Effect of COVID-19 prevention as part of an urban renewal programme

To address existing inequalities, the Barcelona City Council launched a Neighbourhood Plan in 2016-2020. During the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Neighbourhood Plan interventions were intensified. This study aimed to assess the effect of the plan on the incidence of COVID-19 during the first wave of the pandemic in Barcelona.

We used a quasi-experimental design with 16 intervention neighbourhoods and 17 neighbourhoods in the comparison group with similar socioeconomic characteristics.

We calculated the cumulative incidence rate (CIR) of COVID-19 per 100,000 inhabitants by sex, age groups, and neighbourhood of residence. Poisson regression models were fitted to estimate the crude relative risk and relative risk adjusted by socioeconomic status (cRR and aRR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

The CIR of COVID-19 was lower in the intervention neighbourhoods (CIR: 841 per 100,000 inhabitants) than in the comparison group (CIR: 973 per 100,000 inhabitants). On multivariate analysis, the aRR was 0.77 (CI: 0.70-0.83) for men and 0.89 (CI: 0.83-0.96) for women. Among men older than 75 years (aRR = 0.73; CI: 0.62-0.86), statistically significant differences were found in the intervention neighbourhoods compared to the comparison group. This pattern was not observed in women older than 75 years (aRR = 1.13; CI: 0.99-1.30).

This research finds positive short-term effect in the intervention neighbourhoods. We conclude that the COVID-19 control and prevention interventions are likely to explain the better performance in the neighbourhoods included in the Neighbourhood Plan.