Dutch hospital workers forced to quarantine after possible hantavirus exposure due to PPE failure

A dozen hospital workers in the Netherlands will be thrown into quarantine after they skipped strict PPE protocols when dealing with a patient who had been aboard the hantavirus-stricken cruise ship, the MV Hondius. The Netherlands' Radboud University Medical Centre (Radboudumc) confirmed on Monday that 12 of its staff members had risked contamination when they failed to follow specific, strict protocols when handling the blood and urine of an infected person who had been aboard the virus-plagued vessel . Despite the risk of infection being low, the 12 healthcare workers will remain in " preventive quarantine for six weeks as a precaution," the hospital said. The patient infected with the rat-borne virus has been in hospital since Wednesday after being medically evacuated from the ill-fated Dutch vessel that has been at the centre of an international health emergency in recent weeks. Blood was drawn from the patient and processed using standard safety precautions. "Due to the nature of the virus, this blood should have been processed according to a stricter procedure," a hospital spokesperson confirmed on Monday. "In addition, it became clear on Saturday, May 9, that the most up-to-date international regulations had not been followed during the disposal of the patient's urine." Staff members will receive any support needed while in isolation, the university medical centre added, with board chair of Radboudumc Dr Bertine Lahuis attempting to reassure the public the risk to the broader population remains low. “Despite the fact that the chance of actual infection is very small, these measures have a significant impact on all those involved. We regret that this has happened at our university medical centre," she said, adding a careful investigation is coming to "learn from this and to prevent it from happening in the future" once again. Her comments to the public comes days after the infected patient was initially triaged at the hospital, with the Dutch medical centre assuring the public at the time that its staff had containment measures of the hantavirus under control. A spokesperson said at the time: "On the ward where the patient is admitted, appropriate isolation measures have been taken to prevent spread, in accordance with internationally agreed protocols. The team is specialised and trained in the care of patients with severe infectious diseases." The patient at Radboudumc was one of three taken medically evacuated from the MV Hondius when it was docked off the coast of Cape Verde last week. They were transported home to the Netherlands, alongside another patient who has been admitted to Leiden University Medical Centre. A third person who was evacuated from the ship was taken to a hospital in German. That person has tested negative for the hantavirus. Three people died from hantavirus after a recent outbreak involving the 147 passengers and crew members on the Dutch-flagged vessel. Two of the fatal victims were identified as a man and woman from Friesland in the Netherlands, while the third was reported to be a German woman. The last of the passengers remaining on the Dutch-flagged ship were able to exit the vessel on Monday after weeks of uncertainty.