Coronavirus: Swedish Princess starts volunteering at hospital after 3-day training
As the coronavirus pandemic has unleashed a huge burden on healthcare workers around the world, a Swedish Princess has started working at a hospital. Princess Sofia of Sweden is volunteering at the Sophiahemmet Hospital in Stockholm. The princess is the Honorary Chair of Sophiahemmet and had undertaken a brief training program before starting work at the facility. Here are more details.
Princess took 3-day training course with 80 other volunteers
According to Independent, Princess Sofia (35) completed a three-day course at the Sophiahemmet University College in Stockholm to support healthcare workers. The princess—who is a mother of two—along with 80 other volunteers received training to pick up shifts in the kitchen and cleaning department, allowing other medical staff to cater to patients. The volunteers will not be working with patients directly.
'Those who undergo training will not have any patient-close care'
A spokesperson for Sophiahemmet Hospital, Pia Hultkrantz, said the work of the volunteers will ensure that "those who are trained to care (for patients) can actually do it." Hultkrantz said, "Anyone who attends this training will not have any patient-close care. They can disinfect equipment, do shifts in the kitchen and cleaning. Regardless, none of the course participants will work directly with corona patients."
'Princess wants to relieve workload of healthcare professionals'
The Royal Court said in a statement on Wednesday, "In the crisis we find ourselves in, the Princess wants to get involved and make a contribution as a voluntary worker to relieve the large workload of health care professionals."
Sweden reports over 13,000 coronavirus cases, 1,400 deaths
The Sophiahemmet Hospital reportedly does not have any coronavirus cases as of yet. Sweden, however, has reported 1,400 deaths due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and a total of 13,200 cases, according to Johns Hopkins University's tracker. The country has faced backlash as it is yet to enforce a lockdown or social distancing measures. Schools also remain open in Sweden.
'Don't believe high degree of people will follow months-long lockdown'
Sweden's Foreign Minister, Ann Linde, told the Financial Times, "We don't believe in a lockdown if it's not going to be sustainable over time. We don't believe we can lock people in their houses for several months and have a high degree of people following it." Linde added, "But it's a myth that it is business as usual. It's not business as usual."
What is COVID-19?
COVID-19 was first reported in China's Wuhan city late last year. The disease is caused by a novel coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2. The virus attacks a host's respiratory system triggering symptoms such as fever, cough, and breathing difficulties. In severe cases, it may cause pneumonia, multiple organ failure, or death. COVID-19 has spread to over 170 countries, killing 1.46 lakh and sickening 21 lakh.
