CAIRO — Most COVID-19 patients experiencing mild to moderate respiratory symptoms recover without the need for any particular treatment, though older people and those with chronic illness are at greater risk. Yet victims of the disease have been stigmatized. Rejection by their communities could hinder the provision of medical care and prevent the disclosure of potential COVID-19 infections, both factors that could increases infection rates. 

Sabreen Mohamed, 46, is a nurse who recovered from COVID-19. She told Al-Monitor, “People have not been merciful. All of my relatives and acquaintances turned away from me. They look at the coronavirus patient as being the epidemic, though it is not a sin to get sick. My son has even lost friends because of it.”

“Although I recovered from the virus, people have changed their attitudes toward us,” she added.

In an April 13 press conference, World Health Organization representative in Egypt John Jabbour said, “Stigma and discrimination against patients and health care workers is a burden on the health care system in addition to the [main] challenges it faces.”