Doctors and nurses are our heroes in the fight against the coronavirus but they are putting themselves at risk too.
On Saturday (8 Feb), Channel NewsAsia (CNA) reports that 40 medical workers were infected with the coronavirus in one hospital at Wuhan. A patient infected 10 medical workers upon admission to the surgical department.
This shocking revelation emphasises the perilous, arduous journey frontline fighters have to face against the highly infectious coronavirus.
On Friday (Feb 7), doctors at the Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University published a study highlighting the risk of the virus to healthcare workers and hospital patients.
Of the 40 healthcare workers infected, 31 stayed in the general wards, 7 worked in the emergency department, and 2 in the ICU. A single patient infected up to 10 healthcare workers.
Meanwhile, 17 patients admitted for other medical conditions were diagnosed with the coronavirus too. Hence, hospital-associated transmission accounted for 41% of cases included in the study.
A patient may infect 2.2 others on average.
Michael Head, a global health expert at the University of Southampton, told CNA,
If true, then this confirms that some patients are likely to be far more infectious than others.
Hours before the study’s publication, many mourned the death of Dr Li Wenliang who recently succumbed to the coronavirus.
The whistleblower put his reputation on the line to warn the public about the severity of the Wuhan virus during its early days.
The threat of the coronavirus is far from over.
We sincerely hope that all doctors and nurses will stay safe during the epidemic. The virus may also infect patients so remain vigilant when visiting hospitals.
MS News would like to send our condolences to the family of Dr Li.
Featured image from Twitter.
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