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By IOL Reporter 
2h ago
DURBAN – More than 8,000 healthcare workers in the public sector have tested positive for Covid-19. In his weekly press conference on Covid-19, KwaZulu-Natal Prime Minister Sihle Zikalala said that 8,723 healthcare workers tested positive.
“Of those infected, 98 have regrettably succumbed to the disease. Most of the infected healthcare workers are nurses,” he said.
Zikalala expressed concern about the trend of new cases in KZN.
“We are extremely concerned that we started the New Year on a bad note, having passed the 5,000 mark for daily Covid-19 infections. Three days ago, when we were reporting the statistics for December 30, 2020, our province had recorded 5 846 new infections and 116 deaths. It was the first time that we had passed the 5,000 mark, let alone approaching 6,000, “he said.
Zikalala said there were 5,311 new infections on New Year’s Day, yet 134 deaths were reported.
“On New Year’s Day, we again saw a slight improvement, registering 4,974 new infections and 21 deaths. As of yesterday, we registered a total of 4,714 new infections, bringing the total number of Covid-19 infections in the province to 209 691 Sadly, 85 people lost their lives during the last 24 hour reporting period, “the prime minister said.
He said that six districts that have been declared hotspots (eThekwini, UMgungundlovu, Ugu, Harry Gwala, King Cetshwayo and Illembe) are registering high numbers of cases daily.
Family groups have also increased, clearly indicating that infected family members are not complying with self-quarantine and self-isolation rules.
There are also a number of deaths at home and people dying when arriving at health centers, which is a clear indication that people are late for health centers.
“We have also noticed that there is an increase in the number of index cases refusing to list their contacts. This is very problematic as it makes contact tracing difficult, which is the cornerstone of the public health response to Covid-19. We are also concerned that some contacts are refusing to be screened, “he said.
Zikalala said that in response to the second wave, the province has prepared more beds in response to the demand.
“We will reuse 540 beds in Ethekwini, Ilembe and Harry Gwala, omitting field hospitals that will give the province 954 additional beds,” he said.
Zikalala said they have contracted private facilities like hotels and hostels for extra beds and so far two facilities have been commissioned in Ugu and King Cetshwayo districts.
MESS
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