Over 180,000 health workers died of COVID-19 globally: WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) suspect that between 80,000 and 180,000 health professionals worldwide have died from COVID-19, warning of the danger of burnout, anxiety and fatigue as the virus continues to spread worldwide.

"These deaths are a tragic loss," the WHO said on Thursday as it released data on the period between January 2020 and May 2021.

"They are also an indispensable gap in the pandemic response of the world."

Approximately 135 million people are thought to work in the healthcare world worldwide.

Workers in clinics and hospitals have been on the front line of a pandemic since the first COVID-19 cases surfaced in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019. Now, many are suffering from exhaustion and fear.

Healthcare professionals have been given priority in many countries' vaccination programs. Still, the unequal distribution of jabs means that, on average, in the world alone, only two out of five are fully vaccinated, says the WHO.

"We have a moral responsibility to protect all healthcare professionals, to guarantee their rights and to present them with suitable work in a safe and facilitating practice environment. This must include access to vaccines," said Jim Campbell, the WHO Health Workforce Department director.

Since September 2021, available data from 119 countries suggest that less than 1 in 10 health care providers in the African and western Pacific regions were fully vaccinated, while 22 mostly high-income countries reported that more than 80 percent of their employees were fully vaccinated. Some high-income countries have not yet reported the data to the WHO, it noted.

"Encouragingly, the detailed rate of infections and death rate among health and care workers has decreased over time: but the world cannot be self-sufficient. More work is required to reduce the risk of disease in the workplace," the WHO said.

The UN Health Agency says governments need to step up surveillance and reporting of COVID-19 infections, create ill health and deaths among health and care workers, and create a working environment in which healthcare providers are protected.