Pandemic takes a toll on healthcare workers: Over 12,000 infected, 100 dead in Pakistan

Of those ill, majority were from Sindh — 3,889 — followed by 2,967 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Web Desk

December 23, 2020

A medical worker can be seen in a Pakistani medical facility. — AFP/File

The spread of coronavirus amongst medical personnel in Pakistan who are at the frontlines battling the contagion, continues to grow, crossing the 12,000-mark on Tuesday, as per the official tally.

At least 12,027 healthcare professionals have fallen prey to the deadly coronavirus in Pakistan since the onset of the pandemic in late February, representing 3% of the total caseload, according to the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulation and Coordination.

Of those ill, majority were from Sindh — 3,889, followed by 2,967 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 2,778 from Punjab, 1,016 from Islamabad, 656 from Balochistan, 509 from Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and 212 from Gilgit-Baltistan.

Meanwhile, 61% of the infected medics have been doctors.

Pakistan has also lost 110 healthcare workers to date, as per the official statistics, of which majority of the deaths — 34 — occurred in the Sindh province.

According to the National Command and Operation Centre, on December 21 alone, 35 healthcare workers tested positive.

In Pakistan, which is in the grip of the second wave of coronavirus, the caseload has increased to 462,814, while the pandemic has claimed the lives of 9,557 people.