Coronavirus Infected More Than 9,000 Health Care Workers In The US

On February 15, a patient complaining of respiratory issues arrived at a Solano County hospital. This was before the government imposed lockdowns, social distancing, and required the use of masks. During the patient’s stay at the hospital, which lasted for four days, doctors, nurses, and many other workers interacted with the patient. They also performed several aerosol-generating procedures, all done without any protective gear.

About two weeks later, they found that the patient had coronavirus infection, and around 121 staff of the hospital has been exposed to the virus, a CDC report stated. Some 43 staffers had flu-like symptoms and were subsequently tested for COVID-19. Three of them were confirmed to have been infected, making them among the early known cases of hospital work transmission. Out of the three, only two workers were involved in delicate procedures that can eject the virus in the air.

Skyrocketing Cases

After that event, the number of U.S. health-care workers infected with COVID-19 skyrocketed. A CDC analysis which was released on Tuesday revealed that as of April 9, there are already approximately 9,000 American health workers with coronavirus infection. The report provides an early picture of occupation-related infections in health-care workers across America.

The CDC report said that most of those infected are white, female, and many of them are in their 40s. While many of them do not require hospitalization, the CDC said 27 of them had died. Like most COVID-19 patients who succumbed to the illness, most of the health workers who died were 65 years or older.

Lack Of Available Tests

The CDC said their records showing the number of health-workers with COVID-19 might not even be reflective of the actual count. This is due to the persistent lack of available tests in numerous areas. The CDC report even revealed some institutions and regions are no longer testing their health-care workers and are reserving test kits for really sick patients.

The Solano County story demonstrates how difficult social distancing can be in a hospital where a sheer number of people are involved in the care of a single patient. The web of interactions alone can increase that number exponentially. In the case of the Solano County hospital, those tested for coronavirus infection were three physicians, twenty-two nurses, three nursing assistants, four phlebotomists, one pharmacist, and five other service workers.

No Protective Equipment

According to the CDC report, of the three who got infected, two of them had “frequent, close contact with the index patient.” The two were regarded as at high risk. Of the two, one was with the patient for three hours while the patient was on the ventilator while the other took part in placing the device and during intubation.

The report also stated, “Neither wore a facemask, respirator, eye protection, or gown.” The third hospital staff member, who was regarded as at medium risk, wore gloves and a face mask but would sometimes remove the mask when talking. It was also mentioned in the report that the third member had close contact with the COVID-19 patient for two hours. The report, however, does not offer any theories as to why other hospital staffers who were also considered medium or high risk were not infected.

Transmission Risk

The patient was later transferred to another medical facility where she remained on a ventilator until receiving her test result, showing her to be COVID-19 positive. Around 146 health-care workers interacted with the patient at the second hospital, but none of them became infected at the time.

In its report, the CDC wrote, “These findings underscore the heightened COVID-19 transmission risk associated with prolonged, unprotected patient contact.” The health body also said that early recognition and immediate isolation of infected patients is vital. The report also stated that these measures are vital to protect and “preserve the health care workforce in the face of an outbreak already straining the U.S. health care system."