Flight Attendants and Farmers Join Fight against COVID-19

The list of health care workers ready to step in, should their services be needed during the COVID-19 pandemic, has grown to include 680 people, Morgunblaðið reports. Some have already been asked to start working at Landspítali.

They are responding to a request made by health authorities March 11, asking health care workers not currently employed by Landspítali National University Hospital to sign up, in case there is a lack of health care workers.

Many of the people who have signed up are retired, while others have been employed by the health care sector. The list even includes people who have been working as flight attendants or horticultural farmers, according to Morgunblaðið.

Their services are surely needed, for numerous employees of Landspítali have been in quarantine and even isolation, due to the spread of the coronavirus. Friday last week, 224 employees of Landspítali were in quarantine and 25 in isolation.

To begin with, nurses and doctors were asked to sign up, but other health care professions have gradually been added.

The latest groups to be asked to participate are nursing students and medical students. Thirty-seven medical students and six nursing students have already registered.

The rest of the health care workers who have signed up are 195 nurses, 168 nursing assistants, 78 physicians, 71 paramedics, 43 pharmacologists, 18 radiologists and 17 pharmacy technicians.