April 15, 2020
Washing rules keeping health workers safe
Fewer than five health workers infected with COVID-19 are definitely known to have caught it from their patients.
The Director-General of Health, Dr Ashley Bloomfield, told today's briefing 115 health workers have the coronavirus or 8 per cent of the total of 1836 cases.
He says the low number is testament to the huge amount of work done to ensure staff are protected, including the use of personal protective equipment and very good infection control.
About 22 per cent of the cases were connected to personal overseas travel, and the majority of cases came from contacts outside of work.
Of the work-related cases, including 39 among aged residential care workers, the majority came from transmission from other staff rather than patients.
The total of new cases today was 20, eight of them confirmed and 12 probable.
Another 100 people have recovered, bringing the total to 728, so more people in New Zealand have now recovered from COVID-19 than still have it.
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