Japan official on shortage of PPE for medical workers

Japan's emergency medicine organizations on Friday said emergency medical care in the nation has begun to collapse, with many hospitals turning away patients who have fever or other symptoms indicative of the new coronavirus and putting excessive burden on the limited number of critical emergency centers.

The Japanese Association of Acute Medicine and the Japanese Society for Emergency Medicine held an online news briefing and representatives called for increased testing to facilitate the transfer of patients to appropriate medical facilities so that emergency rooms would be able to treat patients in critical condition for causes other than the coronavirus.

Experts also pointed out severe shortages of N95 masks. In a survey, one medical facility reported that staff members were given two masks a week and just one N95 mask with no replacement.

Another facility said it was providing its staff wth one surgical mask every two days and one N95 mask a week.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

But the virus is highly contagious and can be spread by those with mild or no visible symptoms.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and could lead to death.