So far, 511 South African health workers have tested positive for COVID-19, 26 have been hospitalised, while a doctor and nurse have succumbed to the virus, Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize has revealed.
Polity reports that Mkhize was speaking at the Job Shimankana Tabane Provincial Hospital in Rustenburg in the North West on Wednesday.
"Our health workers are like soldiers who go to war. They must be well trained, well armed and well protected. We want them to be confident that they are well trained, that they understand how they don't get infected and how they protect others," Mkhize said. "I pay tribute to all our health workers. They have done a great job. We bow our heads and salute you. We appreciate all the work you are doing. Both public and private health workers are one."
The minister said the novel coronavirus was a battle South Africans faced every day and that it "might be here for another two years". "We have seen the numbers increasing. We said that many of us will get the infection. Our role has been to slow down the rate at which the infection gets to us.”
Mkhize and other senior government officials were visiting the province to receive a donation of personal protective equipment (PPE) from Sibanye Stillwater and Old Mutual in Rustenburg.
The contribution is important, considering the prevalence of the virus among frontline personnel, Mkhize said.
[link url="https://www.polity.org.za/article/coronavirus-511-health-workers-positive-26-hospitalised-and-2-have-died-zweli-mkhize-2020-05-06"]Full Polity report[/link]