WUHAN -- Fifteen medical workers in central Chinese city of Wuhan have been diagnosed with pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), plus one suspected case, the municipal health commission reported early Tuesday morning.

One of the 16 patients is in critical condition while the rest are in stable condition. All of them are being treated in isolation, the commission said.

Medical staff are at the forefront in the prevention and control of the epidemic, the commission said, noting that local hospitals have stepped up efforts to control nosocomial infections, protect medical professionals and strengthened routine monitoring, with suspected cases receiving timely testing and treatment.

A high-level expert team of China's National Health Commission have confirmed people-to-people transmission of the 2019-nCoV and infections among medical staff.

As of 6 p.m. Monday, a total of 224 cases of pneumonia caused by 2019-nCoV had been reported in China. Of them, 217 had been confirmed, with 14 in Guangdong Province, five in Beijing and 198 in Wuhan where the first case was identified with a third death confirmed on Jan 18.