One year of Covid-19 outbreak: 3,607 US healthcare workers died in the line of duty
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According to a 12-month investigation, over 3,600 US health care workers perished in the first year of the pandemic.
US Healthcare workers have faced a host of obstacles in the last 12 months of the pandemic. Tireless work, staying away from near ones, dire PPE shortages, limited Covid tests and sparse tracking of viral spread, all have contributed to the bad condition of the healthcare workers.
According to a 12-month investigation by The Guardian and KHN, over 3,600 US health care workers perished in the first year of the pandemic.
The news organizations have been tracking healthcare worker COVID-19 deaths as part of their 12-month "Lost on the Frontline" project. The project, which launched in April 2020 and closes on April 8, revealed 3,607 healthcare worker deaths in the first year of the pandemic.
For the project, more than 100 reporters examined governmental and private data sources, interviewed those who lost loved ones and spoke to healthcare experts. The 3,607 total includes deaths identified by labour unions, obituaries, media outlets and online postings by family members.
The yearlong series of investigative reports found that many of these deaths could have been prevented. Studies show that health care workers were more than three times as likely to contract covid as the general public.
(With inputs from agencies)