Covid-19 patients are being treated at Nguyen Tri Phuong Hospital
Speaking at a conference on the pandemic held in HCM City on Thursday, director of Nguyen Tri Phuong Hospital, Vo Duc Chien, revealed that 327 staff members had been infected with Covid-19 during work between January and September, 2021.
"Most of the infected staff are female nurses aged below 35," he said. "They had been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 and showed mild symptoms. Many of them had recovered and there were no fatalities."
According to the doctor, Nguyen Tri Phuong Hospital has set up a Covid-19 treatment area with 200 beds. Besides, the hospital has also sent doctors to assist the Covid-19 treatment in some other field hospitals in HCM City and Bac Lieu Province.
Ho Chi Minh City has been the hardest-hit locality since the fourth virus wave hit Vietnam in late April, with over 500,000 cases.
Authorities in Ho Chi Minh City have asked the Ministry of Health to send 3,000 health workers to local hospitals amid rising numbers of seriously-ill patients in recent months.
The municipal People’s Committee has also asked the Ministry of National Defense to continue providing support in terms of human resources at mobile medical stations in the city.
During the peak of the fourth outbreak in July, the Ministry of Health mobilized nearly 20,000 health workers from northern and central provinces to assist pandemic prevention efforts in Ho Chi Minh City and other southern localities. When the pandemic was basically put under control in October, most of these health workers were withdrawn from the localities.
According to Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Truong Son, a doctor and nurse in HCM City has to take care of between 140-150 patients on average, and each has to work eight-ten hours straight in protective suits, which can cause dehydration and electrolyte disorders.
