90-Second Read: Dutch hospital quarantines 12 staffers following Hantavirus protocol breach

A Dutch hospital has quarantined 12 staff members as a preventive measure after blood and urine from a Hantavirus patient were handled without observing strict protocols, as medics around the world work to stop the spread of the outbreak. AMSTERDAM/MADRID, May 12 (Reuters), A Dutch hospital has quarantined 12 staff members as a preventive measure after blood and urine from a Hantavirus patient were handled without observing strict protocols, as medics around the world work to stop the spread of the outbreak. The quarantining of the medics illustrates the challenge of quickly introducing and implementing stricter protocols needed in hospitals and elsewhere for dealing with the Hantavirus strain behind the outbreak that hit the Hondius luxury cruise ship. The Radboudumc hospital admitted its Hantavirus patient, a passenger from the cruise.

Three people, a Dutch couple and a German national, have died since the start of the outbreak of the virus, which is usually spread by wild rodents but can be transmitted person-to-person in rare cases of close contact. Tedros warned that more cases were to be expected as there had been "a lot of interaction" between passengers before Hantavirus was detected. In the latest report of a potential case, Italy's ⁠top infectious diseases hospital said it would examine biological samples from a man who had been in contact with the Dutch woman who died of Hantavirus. With the knowledge we have and the measures we are taking, we are confident we can keep this virus under control. Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.

The 12 will be quarantined for six weeks, the Radboudumc hospital in the city of Nijmegen said, adding that the infection risk was very low and patient care continued uninterrupted. The World Health Organization increased its tally of confirmed cases in the outbreak to nine, up by two from the previous day. The likelihood that staff have been infected as a result is small, but because we know we are dealing with a serious virus, (the hospital) has said: we will play it safe." "It really is a different situation than with COVID. Spain announced late on Monday that a Spaniard had tested positive, one of 14 quarantining at a military hospital in Madrid. The head of the UN agency said more cases could come because of the long incubation.

Arnaud Fontanet, head of Epidemiology of Emerging Diseases at France's Pasteur Institute, said the hunt for new cases could drag on for months, since the incubation time was up to six weeks. The crisis, ⁠though, "is a good way for us to try to test all that has been done since COVID-19," to check how international coordination works, he told Reuters. After the last passengers disembarked the ship in Spain's Canary Islands, the Hondius set sail for the Netherlands late on Monday evening with 25 crew, a doctor and a nurse. It is expected to arrive in the Netherlands by May 17, ship owner Oceanwide Expeditions said. US Department of Health and Human Services officials said on Monday that 18 passengers from the Hondius were flown back to the US.