Indonesian Medical Association’s head on Friday said at least 949 medical workers in Indonesia died of COVID-19 between March 2020 and June 2021.
Khumaidi said of the 949 medical workers, 401 were doctors, 315 nurses, 150 midwives, 15 pharmacists, 43 dentists, and 25 medical laboratory experts.
“The extraordinary surge in the number of patients in hospitals has increased the working hours of medical workers and doubled their risks of being exposed to the coronavirus.’’
Khumaidi said the surge in COVID-19 cases could not be resolved simply by increasing the bed capacity in hospitals, but it had to be addressed from upstream by enhancing public order on health protocols.
According to him, in May 2021, seven doctors died from COVID-19 but the number increased to 24 in June 2021.
January 2021 has seen the highest number of 65 COVID-19 deaths among the workers.
