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18 May 2020updated 06 Oct 2020 9:45am

More than three-quarters of ethnic minority doctors fear they will contract Covid-19, survey finds

By Samuel Horti

Around half of all doctors are concerned for their health during the coronavirus pandemic, a figure that rises to 76 per cent among black, Asian and minority ethnic doctors, a survey by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has found.

Doctors said lack of personal protective equipment, insufficient training on mask fitting and long waits for virus tests left them worried about contracting Covid-19. Nearly two-thirds of doctors said they were worried about passing the virus on to others at home.

“Things are nowhere near what we need,” said president of the RCP, Professor Andrew Goddard,  “People assume everyone’s feeling OK on the frontline and that morale is good, but the survey shows people are worried about it all. The PPE remains a significant issue. Testing has got better, there are still concerns, particularly around delays in getting the results back.”

Multiple analyses have found that ethnic minorities are dying disproportionately from Covid-19 compared to white people.

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