Clinic closures in Germany continue despite pandemic
With coronavirus deaths averaging around 1,000 per day and many hospitals on the verge of collapse, the downsizing of the German health care system continues unabated. More and more clinics are working at full capacity, medical and nursing staff are exhausted and increasingly subject to infection from the virus. In some cases, the virus is spreading out of the clinics across entire regions with a number of such cases reported last weekend.
In Herne, North Rhine-Westphalia an outbreak occurred at St. Anna Hospital. Officials confirmed that 40 members of staff have tested positive so far. Due to the high number of infections, tracing of the transmission chains is no longer possible. The hospital has suspended operations except for emergencies and births and all scheduled surgeries were postponed.