Prevention the best answer – State Minister Fernandopulle
Prevention is the best way to manage a pandemic like COVID-19, State Minister of Primary Health Care, Epidemics and COVID Disease Control Dr. Sudarshani Fernandopulle stressed.
“Unfortunately, most of the people in our country are inquiring about the government’s capacity to treat COVID patients including the number of beds, Oxygen and other things without fulfilling their responsibility of taking precautions to prevent the spread of the virus,” she said.
Dr Fernandopulle further said that the government has the capacity to provide treatment facilities for the infected people and has already taken all necessary measures to manage the situation. But if the people continue to act irresponsibly, the country could not be able to manage the crisis.
Addressing the media yesterday at the Government Information Department, the State Minister said that the third wave of COVID-19 occurred after April 15 and that the spread of the disease was faster than ever before due to the behavior of the virus and the constant changes in the virus.
The Minister further said that this situation is not unique to Sri Lanka and it is a problem faced by the entire world and the behavior of the people is particularly influential in the spread of the disease.
The new strain of the virus has been identified in Sri Lanka and 31,616 patients have been identified so far in the third wave, she said.
The Minister said that with the change in the behavior of the new wave, there would be a rapid spread and there would be more complications and a need for more oxygen.
The best way to prevent infection from COVID-19 is to avoid being exposed to the virus. So the people should wear two face masks, maintain social isolation, avoid places where people congregate unnecessarily, wash hands frequently with soap, and avoid unnecessary trips, except when essential.
The Minister also said that the elderly are still more likely to die from the disease than the younger generation and that it is important to adopt good health practices to protect the elderly as they are still at higher risk.
She further said that over 15,000 Sputnik V vaccine doses have been successfully given to the people in Gothatuwa, Kolonnawa and other areas and 71,203 Sinopharm vaccine doses have been given to the people in Colombo, Kalutara and Gampaha districts in the Western Province. The Pfizer vaccine has also been approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) and will be available in the near future, she said.
The Minister further stated that there is no immediate effect on the use of a vaccine and it takes three weeks after getting the first dose for it to start to work. She emphasized that it was important for vaccinated people to wear masks and follow proper hygiene instructions.
According to medical experts, the best time to take the second dose is between 14 and 16 weeks.
She said that every vaccination is done to prevent the disease, reduce the severity of the disease, and to reduce the spread of the disease. The Minister further stated that five million Pfizer vaccine doses and 13 million Sputnik vaccine doses have been ordered and efforts are being made to procure 600,000 AstraZeneca vaccine doses (for the second round).
source http://www.dailynews.lk/2021/05/13/local/249193/prevention-best-answer-%E2%80%93-state-minister-fernandopulle
No comments