Morbidity and mortality among health care workers due to coronavirus disease 2019

ABSTRACT

Background: A novel coronavirus disease started in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. With its rapid spread, many cases were reported from other countries resulting in more than 2 million confirmed cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) worldwide. Health care workers (HCWs) are the frontline warriors of any outbreak response and as such are exposed to hazards that put them at risk of infections, here with the coronavirus. Aim and Objective: Incidences of morbidity and mortality among HCWs have also been reported in many countries. Despite these isolated reports, a comparative data among the majorly affected countries were not available. In this article, an attempt has been made to review the effect of COVID-19 on the health of the HCWs. Materials and Methods: This is an observational study where data regarding morbidity and mortality among HCWs were collected by online search until April 30, 2020. Data were collected from the World Health Organization website and government and health-care websites. Various online newspaper articles were also checked and relevant information was collected. To evaluate and analyze, a data collection sheet was prepared. Results: In our study, the number of affected HCWs was highest in Spain, followed by Italy, the United States of America, China, and the UK. Till April 2020, the total number of affected HCWs in India although very less, the correlation between infection and death in HCWs due to COVID-19 was found statistically significant. Conclusion: The HCWs being the frontline warriors in the fight against COVID-19, they should be provided with adequate protective measures to minimize morbidity and mortality in them.