Trainee nurses have joined the operations at COVID-19 facilities amid a worrying surge in infections.
Maldives National University (MNU) said 136 students who are training to be nurses at the university joined the COVID-19 facilities as volunteers after the government appealed to healthcare workers to assist in COVID-19 operations.
Vice Chancellor of the university, Dr. Mohamed Shareef told AVAS that the healthcare system is facing a lot of strain at this time and that there is a shortage of nurses. The Health Emergency Operation Centre (HEOC) requested the university to provide trainee nurses as volunteers to ease the strain on the system, said Shareef.
According to Shareef, most trainees were sent to Hulhumale' Medical Facility which is currently the most overburdened facility. While the students are volunteering while their exams are looming up ahead, the university has made arrangements to postpone their exams, said Shareef.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic hit Maldives in March 2020, over 1300 volunteers from MNU, including both students and faculty members have worked at emergency centers in Male' and the atolls, as well as on the COVID-19 task force.
