Beautiful Virgin Islands

Saturday, Mar 14, 2026

Doctors And Nurses Fighting The Coronavirus Outbreak Are Getting Sick And Dying - And No One Is Keeping Track

Doctors And Nurses Fighting The Coronavirus Outbreak Are Getting Sick And Dying - And No One Is Keeping Track

“We are starting to see our health care providers die very quickly from this virus,” one nurse practitioner said.

Health care workers fighting the coronavirus outbreak across the country are getting sick and dying, nurses and doctors say. And despite the fact that they’re essential to fighting the epidemic, no one in the US seems to be keeping track.

Judy Wilson-Griffin, a nurse at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri, died last week after testing positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, according to the St. Louis American. In Georgia, two health care workers who tested positive for COVID-19 died: a 48-year-old woman who worked at Donalsonville Hospital and a 42-year-old mammogram technician at Piedmont Newnan Hospital, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. And Kious Kelly, a 48-year-old assistant nursing manager at Mount Sinai West medical center in Manhattan, died Tuesday after he previously tested positive for COVID-19, according to the New York Post.

Doctors, nurses, and others in health care have sounded the alarm for weeks that a lack of access to testing and personal protective equipment (PPE), including face masks and gloves, has left them at a high risk of getting exposed as they fight the virus that’s already killed more than 1,000 people in the country.

Now, they say, their fears are being realized.

“There is not one among us who is not frightened stepping through these hospital doors each day to simply continue doing our job,” Dawn Aldinger, a 59-year-old longtime nurse in Seattle, told BuzzFeed News. “I, for one, have updated my will as I am doubtful I will survive this healthcare crisis.”

And if health care workers get sick, there are cascading impacts that will affect everybody else. Doctors and nurses who keep working while infected can expose more people. If these workers go home to recover, then there are fewer of them to tend to the growing number of infections popping up across the country. If they are so critically ill that they need to seek help, there will be less resources available to treat the general public.

Despite the urgency of protecting health care workers, few states are prioritizing keeping track of whether they are testing positive or dying. Out of the 10 states currently leading the country for infections and deaths contacted by BuzzFeed News, California is the only one publicly reporting on infected health care workers.

At least 35 California health care workers on the front lines of the coronavirus outbreak have already tested positive for COVID-19, state officials reported on Wednesday. Due to a lack of available testing, this is likely an undercount.

A Washington state official told BuzzFeed News they are asking everyone confirmed with COVID-19 about their profession, but due to incomplete information, they are not disclosing numbers at this time.

Officials in Illinois, New Jersey, and New York, home to the country’s biggest epidemic, said the information is not publicly available. New York officials last week told health care workers not to get tested if they weren’t exhibiting symptoms, even if they were likely exposed, due to shortages in protective and testing equipment.

Meanwhile, Georgia and Michigan officials said they were not tracking health care cases. Florida, Massachusetts, and Louisiana did not respond to an inquiry from BuzzFeed News.

The CDC did not immediately respond to questions about whether the agency is tracking infections in health care workers nationwide.

In Italy, the coronavirus outbreak has overwhelmed the country’s health care system, leading to soaring fatalities and a high number of health care worker infections that has put further strain on the country’s ability to respond. Of the nearly 68,000 known infections in the country, about 9% of them, or 6,205 cases, have been health care workers, according to a March 25 update.

Health care workers in the US have told BuzzFeed News they are deeply concerned about following in Italy’s footsteps.

According to one doctor in Providence, Rhode Island, who declined to be named, the surge in suspected COVID-19 patients is starting to take a toll. “Things are starting to ramp up here,” he told BuzzFeed News in an email. ”I suspect we're about 5 days behind New York. Sadly, we have several residents, fellows, attendings and multiple nurses and other staff who have gotten sick.”

Another nurse practitioner in Washington, DC, said that a death was recently reported in a nursing message group she's in. “We are starting to see our health care providers die very quickly from this virus,” she told BuzzFeed News.

“I am deeply concerned that as the lack of PPE situation worsens, we are going to lose a large portion of our medical providers," she said. "We will then be faced with a pandemic where we don't have enough people to treat the sick, as the pinch point of care is no longer equipment like ventilators, but providers.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Weak Growth Signals UK Economy Was Faltering Even Before Middle East Energy Shock
Marks & Spencer Tops UK Fashion Retail Rankings as Most Considered Brand
United States Launches Trade Investigation Into Allies Over Forced Labour Practices
United States Launches Trade Investigation Into Allies Over Forced Labour Practices
Russia Accuses Britain Over Storm Shadow Strike as London Reaffirms Ukraine’s Right to Self-Defence
Russia Accuses Britain Over Storm Shadow Strike as London Reaffirms Ukraine’s Right to Self-Defence
Royal Navy to Acquire Twenty Uncrewed Surface Vessels for Autonomous Warfare Testing
Russia Summons British and French Envoys After Ukrainian Storm Shadow Strike on Strategic Facility
Starmer Confirms Britain Will Maintain Sanctions on Russia Despite U.S. Policy Shift
UK Moves to Refine AI Definition in Investment Security Reform
UK Economy Stalls in January as Growth Unexpectedly Falls to Zero
Asian Energy Security Tested as Strait of Hormuz Disruption Threatens Oil Supplies
Iran Sets Three Conditions for Ending Regional War as Diplomatic Efforts Intensify
Tesla Secures Approval to Supply Electricity Directly to Homes Across Britain
Prince William Delivers Tribute to Australia’s Naval Alliance Amid Renewed Royal Spotlight on the Country
UK Foreign Secretary Travels to Saudi Arabia to Reinforce Support for Regional Allies
Putin’s ‘Hidden Hand’ May Be Assisting Iran in Conflict With Trump, UK Defence Secretary Warns
UK Sets April Deadline for Tech Platforms to Strengthen Online Protections for Children
Elon Musk Moves Into Britain’s Energy Market as Tesla Wins Licence to Supply Power
UK Watchdog Warns Fuel Retailers Against Profiteering Amid Iran War Price Surge
Report Claims Iran Used UK Charity Network to Expand Influence
United States and United Kingdom Establish Joint Standards for Counter-Drone Technology
Iran May Be Laying Naval Mines in Strait of Hormuz, UK Warns Amid Escalating Gulf Tensions
US Deploys Bunker-Buster Bombs to UK Airbase as Iran Conflict Intensifies
British Troops in Iraq Intercept Iranian Drones Targeting Coalition Base
Release of Mandelson Files Raises Tensions as UK Seeks Stable Relations With Donald Trump
UK Documents Reveal Starmer Was Warned About Mandelson’s Epstein Links Before Ambassador Appointment
Nearly Five Hundred UK Mortgage Deals Withdrawn in Two Days as Market Volatility Forces Lenders to Reprice
Three Cargo Ships Hit Near Iran as Attacks Spread to Strategic Strait of Hormuz
Why British Police Repeatedly Declined to Investigate Jeffrey Epstein’s UK Links
UK Parliament Ends Hereditary Seats in House of Lords, Closing Chapter on Centuries of Aristocratic Lawmaking
EU and UK Urge Israel to Act Against Rising West Bank Settler Violence Amid Regional Tensions
US Senator John Kennedy Says Keir Starmer Should Not Be Trusted for Military Advice Amid Iran War Debate
UK High Court Rejects Attempt to Revive Terrorism Charge Against Kneecap Rapper
Revolut Secures Full UK Banking Licence After Multi-Year Regulatory Wait
Kentucky’s Bench Boost Powers Wildcats Past LSU in SEC Tournament Opener
British Couple Die After Being Pulled From Water at Australian Beach During Family Visit
British Airways Suspends UK Repatriation Flights as Middle East Travel Disruption Deepens
US Forces Prepare Ordnance at RAF Fairford as Strategic Bombers Deploy for Middle East Operations
Nigel Farage Faces Criticism After Saying Britain Should Stay Out of Iran War
Landmark UK Trial Begins Over Sony’s PlayStation Store Pricing
UK High Court Rejects Bid to Challenge Britain’s Chagos Islands Agreement With Mauritius
Finnish Duo Triumphs in England’s Annual Wife-Carrying Race, Winning a Barrel of Ale
How U.S. and UK National Security Strategies Are Reshaping the Global Business Landscape
Green Party Gains Momentum as Labour Shifts Toward the Political Centre
Royal Navy Destroyer HMS Dragon Sets Sail for Eastern Mediterranean as Regional Tensions Rise
UK Homebuilder Persimmon Warns Iran Conflict Could Dent Property Buyer Confidence
Roman Abramovich Signals Legal Fight if UK Seeks to Seize Chelsea Sale Funds
UK Ready to Back Emergency Oil Reserve Release as Middle East Conflict Pushes Prices Higher
Study of 40,000 Articles Sparks Debate Over Alleged Anti-Muslim Bias in UK Media
×