Virus-infected medical frontliners in Philippines rise to 1,819

by Gaea Katreena Cabico (Philstar.com), 5 May 2020

MANILA, Philippines — The number of people from the healthcare sector infected with the new coronavirus rose to 1,819 Tuesday, the Department of Health said.

In the Philippines, one of five people afflicted with coronavirus disease are healthcare workers.

Forty-seven additional cases were reported in the past 24 hours. The day before, only 14 cases of healthcare workers contracting the disease were reported.

Of the 1,819 infected medical frontliners, 350 have recovered, while 34 succumbed to the disease.

Nurses accounted for 37% of the cases from the health sector, while physicians constituted 32% of the infections. There are also 107 infected nursing assistants, 70 medical technologists and 49 administrative staff.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire urged health workers who were laid off to apply in the department’s emergency hiring program.

Nationwide, there are 9,684 cases of COVID-19, with the addition of 199 patients. A total of 1,408 people have recovered but 637 died from the disease.