Nurses groups denunce death toll among nurses doubled in the past month

The death toll among nurses doubled in the past month starting from 260 victims on May 6, according to the International Council of Nurses report published yesterday, which is based on data from more than 30 countries.

In detail, more than 600 nurses worldwide are known to have died from the Coronavirus pandemic, which has infected an estimated 450,000 healthcare workers.

The ICN represents 130 national associations and more than 20 million registered nurses. Image credit The Sen Times

“In the last two months, we have seen the number of deaths of nurses due to COVID-19 to rise from 100 to now more than 600 worldwide, and we think that the number of healthcare workers who could be infected by the virus is around 450,000 across the globe” Howard Catton, chief executive officer of the Geneva-based ICN, told the media.“These are numbers that keep skyrocketing,” he said.

The pandemic’s true human cost among health professionals was not known, the association said, renewing its appeal for greater protection for them and systematic collection of reliable data.

Averagely, 7% of all cases of Coronavirus are among healthcare workers, which clearly means that nurses and other medical staff are at great personal risk -and so are the patients they care for.

Extrapolating from more than 6 million reported cases, it has been established that there have been around 450,000 infections among healthcare workers.

Co-director of the intensive care unit at CommonSpirit's Dignity Health California Hospital Medical Center, Dr. Zafia Anklesaria, 35, who is seven months pregnant, talks to a nurse in the intensive care unit at the hospital where she works, during the coronavirus disease outbreak, in Los Angeles, California, US. Image credit Reuters

Yet, it is important to underline that infection rates among healthcare workers vary greatly between countries, with fewer than 1% in Singapore and more than 30% in Ireland. Spain and Germany have recorded low numbers of fatalities among healthcare workers despite large outbreaks, the report highlighted.

“Why do the rates of deaths among nurses appear higher in some Latin American countries?” the report asked, referring to the region that the World Health Organization (WHO) says has emerged as the new epicentre for the pandemic.

Also, “Why are some countries reporting disproportionate deaths among black, Asian and minority ethnic HCWs (healthcare workers)? This is an issue raised directly by the Philippine Nurses Association to the ICN -which represents 130 national associations and more than 20 million registered nurses- concerning Filipino HCWs in the UK,” it concluded.

Image credit International Council of Nurses Consejo Internacional de Enfermeras Conseil International des Infirmières