Characteristics of doctors' fatality due to COVID-19 in Western Europe and Asia-Pacific countries.

ABSTRACT

Under the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the deaths of healthcare professionals have been increasingly reported worldwide. We performed a cross-sectional, observational study using news reports on the websites among selected countries as of April 2020. We found 120 dead medical doctors due to COVID-19 in Western Europe and Asia-Pacific countries; 67 in Italy (47 in the Northern part), 34 in China (22 in Hubei), 6 in France, 4 in the UK, the USA and Spain and 1 in South Korea, respectively. Among them, 90% were men, and specialties were reported as general practitioners for 30% and as physicians for 11.6%. The overall proportions of dead medical doctors amounted to 1.9 per 10 000 confirmed cases and 30.2 per 10 000 dead cases, respectively. Proactive measures are warranted to protect doctors especially who often encounters with COVID-19 patients.