Mexican healthcare workers are dying from COVID-19

The death toll from the novel coronavirus among medical personnel in Mexico has reached 111 , and the virus has infected between 8,500 and 15,000 hospital staffers, officials said Monday.

Assistant Health Secretary Hugo López-Gatell

said the dead included 66 doctors , 16 nurses , and 29 other hospital staff , including support personnel, dentists, and lab techs.

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45% of the fatalities were IMSS staff, 36% from the Health Ministry , 14% from the ISSSTE , and 5% from other institutions, including private ones.

There are 8,544 confirmed COVID-19 cases among health professionals in Mexico, and another 6,747 suspected cases , many of which are awaiting test results.

The country’s total coronavirus caseload has increased to 36,327 cases , with 3,573 deaths , though officials have acknowledged the true number is probably much higher.

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Some cities in Mexico have seen a lot of cases but are tapering off. Others like Mexico City appear to be at their peak. And still, other cities have not seen many cases at all.

For that reason, López-Gatell said the plan for a partial re-opening of Mexico expected later this week would be different in each region, noting “it no longer makes sense to have a safe-distancing policy on a national level.”

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In a hospital in Tamazulápam del Espíritu Santo, Oaxaca, at least nine healthcare workers contracted the virus; 15 people are now in isolation.

According to Juan Carlos Márquez Heine , the deputy director of the General Health Services, this community outbreak started when a nurse’s husband tested positive and the healthcare workers failed to inform hospital authorities that she had COVID-19 symptoms .

In Tabasco , 717 healthcare workers have contracted the novel coronavirus; 15 have died. Those infected are between 30 and 49 years old and suffer from chronic illnesses.

After the massive outbreak, authorities are implementing strict measures to halt the spread of the virus.

The fatal victims include doctors, nurses, stretcher-bearers, administrative staff, laboratory workers, dentists, chemists, and social workers.

A university hospital in Monterrey , Nuevo León , registered a COVID-19 outbreak among 26 healthcare workers.

The virus was spread by a person with no symptoms who constantly visited a patient in the internal medicine area. Now visits are banned and patients will use electronic devices to stay in touch with their families. The healthcare workers have mild symptoms and are stable.

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