Doctors at GP stations or emergency rooms are not allowed to view Covid-19 patients' files without their permission, the Dutch Data Protection Authority (AP) said in a letter to Ministers Martin van Rijn for Medical Care and Hugo de Jonge of Public Health. The two Ministers are currently working on a temporary regulation that allows patient data to be viewed without express permission, NRC reports.
Health
Apr 1 '20 16:10
Apr 1 '20 15:20
Over the past weeks, the Dutch police took down ten web shops who were selling coronavirus related scams. These online stores offered items ranging from antibacterial bank cards, to a Covid-19 tracker, and included multiple web shops offering medical masks for sale, the police said in a statement.
Apr 1 '20 14:06
Another 134 people succumbed to the coronavirus, brining the total number of Covid-19 deaths in the Netherlands to 1,173, public health substitute RIVM said on Wednesday. Two people who died were under the age of 50, the RIVM said. One was a man between the ages of 35 and 39, while the other was a woman between 45 and 49.
Apr 1 '20 12:49
Where ICU nurses normally care for two patients at a time, they are now caring for three or even four during the coronavirus, Diederik Gommers of the intensive care association NVIC said in a briefing to parliament on Wednesday. "That is stressful. The nurses feel the pressure. They feel the stress that they are not in control, that if they make mistakes, patients die," Gommers said, NU.nl reports.
Apr 1 '20 11:06
A "flattening" of the Covid-19 infection curve may be starting to show itself, Jaap van Dissel of public health institute RIVM said to parliament on Wednesday. The number of coronavirus patients reported to municipal health services GGD, admitted to hospital, and admitted to intensive care are all leveling off, he said. But he added that these are provisional figures based only on patients who were officially tested, NU.nl reports.
Apr 1 '20 09:08
Schiphol Airport went smoke-free starting on Wednesday, closing the last of its designated smoking areas located in the secured parts of the airport. Smoking was already forbidden in areas outside of security checkpoints.
The square outside Schiphol Plaza, known as Jan Dellaertplein, is the last remaining place where passengers and visitors may smoke at the airport. The airport plans to move the smoking areas there further away from the plaza’s entries and exits.
Apr 1 '20 08:24
A total of 1,152 people were being treated for the coronavirus in intensive care units across the Netherlands as of 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday, according to figures released by foundation NICE. That is 80 more than on Tuesday morning. All in all, ICUs in the country have treated 1,450 Covid-19 patients. A total of 176 of them succumbed to the virus, others recovered and were discharged.
Apr 1 '20 07:54
Despite sex clubs being closed and the practice of high-contact professions being banned to curb the spread of coronavirus Covid-19, many sex workers in the Netherlands are still working, only from home. They have bills to pay and some are not eligible for government social security schemes and emergency funds, Nieuwsuur reports after speaking to sex workers and associations that represent them.
Mar 31 '20 21:09
A new study which promises to reveal how many people have antibodies for the novel coronavirus is set to be launched over the course of the next several months, Dutch public health agency RIVM announced on Monday.
"In the coming months, RIVM will measure antibodies in the blood over several rounds of research," a statement announcing the study reads. "With the results, RIVM aims to learn more about the spread of the virus and about the development of herd immunity in all age groups."
Mar 31 '20 19:03
The measures in place to curb the spread of coronavirus Covid-19 will be extended until at least April 28, Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced in a press conference on Tuesday evening, after meeting with experts, advisers and the Ministerial Crisis Management Team. During this time schools, daycare facilities, restaurants, museums, and other contact-heavy businesses will remain closed.
Mar 31 '20 18:34
A hospital in Zuid-Holland today had a moment to celebrate an uplifting story in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic when it authorized the discharge of a 101-year-old woman who recovered from the respiratory illness Covid-19. The woman was kept in isolation at Ijsselland Ziekenhuis for about the past ten days after she entered the medical center complaining of a shortness of breath.
Mar 31 '20 15:00
Spring in the Netherlands started out with a record number of sunny hours this year, according to Weerplaza. Over the past 11 days, there were over 100 hours of sunshine in the country, breaking the 1933 record of 98 sunny hours. The sunny weather made it difficult for some people to stick to the social distancing measures in place to curb the spread of coronavirus Covid 19.
Mar 31 '20 14:02
Some 1,039 people in the Netherlands who previously tested positive for coronavirus have died since the end of February, Dutch public health agency RIVM said on Tuesday. The figures include an additional 175 people whose deaths were recorded in the previous 24-hour period.
Mar 31 '20 12:30
Rotterdam and the province of Zeeland closed campsites and other tourist destinations to keep tourists out of these regions, in order to not put too much pressure on their healthcare systems during the Covid-19 crisis.
Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb of Rotterdam ordered campsites and permanent holiday accommodations closed on the Zuid-Holland islands, according to RTL Nieuws. Though permanent residents will still be allowed to live in their homes located on holiday destinations.
Mar 31 '20 11:48
With schools being closed and parents working from home due to the coronavirus, kids in the Netherlands saw their daily screen time increase by around an hour. And while most schools and parents are satisfied with how the first two weeks of distance learning has gone, many are also concerned about children falling behind in their school work, according to two different studies, Het Parool reports.
Mar 31 '20 10:01
KLM is looking into ways to expand measuring the temperature of travelers flying with the Dutch airline during the coronavirus crisis. These health checks are currently performed on flights to Canada, Seoul, and Singapore at the request of these locations, a spokesperson for the company said to NU.nl. CNV is calling on employers to do more to protect their workers against Covid-19.
Mar 31 '20 09:32
Workers in healthcare and welfare occupations find their work most emotionally draining. Teachers, especially in primary education, most often get emotionally involved in their work, Statistics Netherlands reported on Tuesday based on a 2018 survey among 63 thousand workers. The top 10 most emotionally draining jobs are all on the list of "crucial workers" who have to keep working through the coronavirus crisis.
Mar 31 '20 08:41
Johnson & Johnson and the United States Department of Health pushed 1 billion dollars into a possible vaccine against coronavirus Covid-19 being developed by Janssen Vaccines & Prevention in Leiden, a subsidiary of the American company. Johnson & Johnson hopes to have the first batches of Covid-19 vaccines ready for emergency authorization by early next year, the company said in a statement.
Mar 31 '20 08:09
A total of 1,072 people are being treated for coronavirus Covid-19 in intensive care in Dutch hospitals, according to figures released by foundation NICE on Tuesday morning. That is an increase of 46 compared to Monday. In total, ICUs in the country have treated 1,323 coronavirus patients. 149 of them died. Others recovered.
Mar 31 '20 07:42
The Netherlands' Outbreak Management Team advised the government to extend current measures to curb the spread of Covid-19 through to end-April or early-May. The team also recommended limiting inland tourism, sources in The Hague told RTL Nieuws. The government is meeting on Tuesday to decide which advice to follow and will officially announce measures in a press conference expected around 7:00 p.m.
Mar 30 '20 18:50
A Dutch submarine running exercises off the coast of Scotland will return to the Netherlands earlier than planned after eight crew members tested positive for coronavirus. The naval vessel Zr.Ms. Dolfijn was sailing from Scotland to Den Helder, Noord-Holland on Monday evening with all 58 of its crew onboard, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.
One of those who tested positive for the virus was still showing symptoms of Covid-19. That person was coughing and had a fever. Some of the other seven had previously shown similar complaints.
Mar 30 '20 16:30
Researchers in Noord-Nederland are launching a large scale study into the possible risk factors for coronavirus Covid-19. The researchers hope that this study, done by bio-bank Lifelines, the University of Groningen, UMC Groningen, and the Aletta Jacobs School of Public Health, will help predict the course of future infectious diseases, Dagblad van het Noorden reports.
Mar 30 '20 15:40
The Gelderse Vallei hospital in Ede is officially the first Dutch hospital to receive military aid because of the coronavirus. A total of 18 soldiers were deployed to the Gelderland hospital on Monday morning, Omroep Gelderland reports.
All soldiers involved have a medical background. Six are qualified doctors, the other 12 are qualified nurses. They followed a short training course before being deployed to aid in the hospital.
The idea is that military personnel will also be deployed to other hospitals to help deal with the coronavirus crisis.
Mar 30 '20 14:12
Another 93 people reportedly died after testing positive for coronavirus, public health agency RIVM said on Monday, bringing the country's total number of fatal cases to 864. More patients were also admitted to intensive care units through the course of the day, with the total number of known infections in the Netherlands rising to 11,750, an increase of 884 since Sunday.
