Supporting the Health Care Workforce During the COVID 19 Global Epidemic.
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV 2) continues to spread internationally. Worldwide, more than 100 000 cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID 19, the disease caused by SARS CoV 2) and more than 3500 deaths have been reported. COVID 19 is thought to have higher mortality than seasonal influenza, even as wide variation is reported. While the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates global mortality at 3.4\ South Korea has noted mortality of about 0.6\.Vaccine development and research into medical treatment for COVID 19 are under way, but are many months away. Meanwhile, the pressure on the global health care workforce continues to intensify. This pressure takes 2 forms. The first is the potentially overwhelming burden of illnesses that stresses health system capacity and the second is the adverse effects on health care workers, including the risk of infection.
JAMA