30 Mar 2020

Coronavirus: Extra medical staff sent to the West Coast

From Morning Report, 7:10 am on 30 March 2020

Medical staff from Canterbury are heading to the West Coast to help after 21 health workers from Greymouth's hospital had to go into isolation.

They had been treating the 70-year-old woman who yesterday became the country's first Covid-19 fatality.

The woman was initially misdiagnosed as having the flu so those who treated her did not wear the full Covid-19 protective gear.

RNZ health correspondent Rowan Quinn speaks to Susie Ferguson.