The number of Covid-19 infections in the province is increasing, especially with the appearance of the Omicron variant which has the ability to spread faster. But, the number of serious patients requiring hospitalization and deaths is very small. Currently, counting cases to classify pandemic levels are no longer suitability. Covid-19 needs to be considered as a specialized disease that is treated like others.
Counting cases to classify pandemic levels is no longer suitability
This is the opinion of Assoc. Prof. Dr Nguyen Lan Hieu. According to him, counting Covid-19 cases to classify pandemic levels is not reasonable in the current period. Currently, the number of Covid-19 infections does not accurately reflect the levels of the pandemic. At least 50% of the number of infections at present do not do PCR tests, but mainly perform rapid tests and then self-isolate at home. Therefore, the announcement of infections is no longer suitability. In Binh Duong, the number of Covid-19 cases over the past week increased strongly, but up to 80.6% of cases did not show any symptoms. There were also 98.1% of patients with no underlying diseases while 99% of patients were treated at home. Most of them got full doses of Covid-19 vaccine. In particular, Binh Duong had no severe cases or deaths in the community and at medical facilities over the past 2 weeks…
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In the coming time, Covid-19 will be considered as a common disease. Counting the number of infections to classify the levels of the pandemic is no longer suitability. In picture: Covid-19 patients being treated at Di An city-based Covid-19 treatment facility
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Lan Hieu emphasized that vaccines are a safe shield for people against Covid-19. Statistics show that the vaccination rate of people aged 12 and over with the first, second and third shots in Binh Duong is 129.6%, 104.5% and 57.5% of the population, respectively. The wide coverage of Covid-19 vaccines along with the adaptation of the local health system is factors and conditions for Binh Duong to consider Covid-19 as a specialized disease. Simply, Covid-19 is understood as an endemic disease. The virus that causes Covid-19 may not be completely eradicated, but it becomes an endemic pathogen like seasonal flu - a common endemic disease like another specialized infectious disease.
“I think that as of now, Binh Duong needs to consider Covid-19 as a specialized disease and infections need to be treated like other specialized diseases. The payment for Covid-19 medical examination and treatment also need to be solved like other diseases, which can be covered by health insurance or can be paid by patients with examination-treatment services. Thus, the State will have enough capacity to do the best and most intensive work”, said Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Lan Hieu.
Discussing the virulence of Omicron mutation, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Lan Hieu shared: In the last days of 2021 and early 2022, many countries around the world recorded a sharp increase in the number of new Covid-19 cases, due to the Omicron variant of the SARSCoV-2 virus. Many researches are being done to obviously understand this variant. Up to now, most agree that Omicron has the ability to spread faster than any other variants, but does not cause severe consequences like Delta variant. The number of patients who get serious and die, due to this variant is very small. In fact, in Vietnam and Binh Duong, after the Omicron strain entered, we were safe from the pandemic. Vietnam can remove Covid-19 from the list of infectious diseases in group A (including diseases that are very dangerous, capable of very fast transmission with high mortality or unknown agents).
Treating Covid-19 as common disease
In terms of solutions when considering Covid-19 as a common disease, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Lan Hieu said: Currently, Binh Duong has widely deployed a model of separate treatment areas for Covid-19 patients at hospitals, clinics, health centers of districts, towns and cities. This is the right direction that the province has chosen to improve the quality of treatment, considering Covid-19 as a common disease. Based on the criteria of the number of severe patients and the capacity of the health system, communes, wards and towns have carried out the classification of pandemic levels. Regarding the goal of reducing the mortality rate, Binh Duong has also changed in the criteria for determining the rate of death per number of severe hospitalizations, but not the death rate per total number of infections, which was applied in the previous period. “I am very pleased because province-based hospitals have set up post-Covid-19 departments to give physical and psychological care for patients. Currently, units and localities need to be proactive about medical equipment, supplies and drugs to help people feel more secure when considering Covid-19 as a common disease and well implementing the message "5K + vaccine + medicine and awareness is very important" in the fight against the pandemic”.
At present, eradicating the SARSCoV-2 virus that causes the Covid-19 epidemic is difficult. Seeing Covid-19 as a common disease helps us adapt safely. People need to take good measures when considering Covid-19 as a common disease such as: being proactive to get vaccinated against Covid-19, strictly following the "5K" message of the Ministry of Health, considering Covid-19 as a common disease without panic. The community should not discriminate against F0 cases, practice healthy habits, take exercise, improve health by having proper nutrition, work and rest. When people discover themselves to be infected with Covid-19, please notify the information to authorities and comply with isolation, treatment under the instructions of the health sector.
Statistics show that the vaccination rate of people aged 12 and over with the first, second and third shots in Binh Duong is 129.6%, 104.5% and 57.5% of the population, respectively. The wide coverage of Covid-19 vaccines along with the adaptation of the local health system is factors and conditions for Binh Duong to consider Covid-19 as a specialized disease. Simply, Covid-19 is understood as an endemic disease. The virus that causes Covid-19 may not be completely eradicated, but it becomes an endemic pathogen like seasonal flu - a common endemic disease like another specialized infectious disease.
Reported by Hoang Linh-Translated by Kim Tin
