Dwi Argo Santosa, Jakarta – The Association of Indonesian Nurses, or PPNI, claimed on Tuesday nearly 3,000 members have been infected by coronavirus and the number could grow significantly as the figure has come from just four provinces.
The association also said at least 85 nurses have died from coronavirus-related diseases.
PPNI chairman Harif Fadhilah said the figure was compiled from Jakarta, East Java, South Sulawesi and Bali.
"I believe the number of infected nurses will grow by thousands more if we collect data from all across Indonesia," Harif said in a news conference in Jakarta.
According to him, Jakarta has the highest number of nurses who tested positive for the virus, totaling 1,629. East Java reported the second-highest number with 844, followed by South Sulawesi (350) and Bali (156), bringing the total number of infected nurses to 2,979 so far.
The uptick in newly cases of coronavirus, which now can pass 4,000 per day, is very alarming.
"Especially for medical workers who risk their lives to treat patients tirelessly, although it's apparent that they now begin to feel very exhausted," he said.
Harif said he welcomed the government's plan to launch diagnostic testing for medical workers for free across the Greater Jakarta, home to around 30 percent of confirmed cases nationwide.
But he urged the government to expand the service to all other provinces, primarily in hotspots.
His remarks came four days after the Indonesian Doctors' Association (IDI) announced that 117 doctors across the country had died from the virus.
East Java reported the highest fatality among doctors with 30 deaths, followed by North Sumatra (21), Jakarta (16) and West Java (11).
Indonesia has recorded nearly 249,000 confirnmed cases of coronavirus, including 9,677 deaths, as of Monday.