Pediatrician at Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) Dr. Ahmed Faisal has revealed that three children are currently admitted for Covid-19 treatment.
Dr. Faisal revealed that two out of the three children positive for Covid-19 and hospitalized for treatment are infants just two months old. The third child is a toddler aged one, who is to have suffered from a fit due to the virus.
Highlighting that the community is very safe from Covid-19 because of the Covid-19 vaccine, Dr. Faisal stressed that the number of deaths due to Covid-19 and people relying on ventilators as well as people receiving treatment in ICU have been significantly reduced.
He added that Covid-19 is still a serious concern, with healthcare professionals still observing children suffering from Covid-19 having to be admitted at times.
Stressing that some of these children suffer from fits as well as pneumonia due to Covid-19, Dr. Faisal stressed on the importance of vaccination to protect them. He said that Covid-19 vaccination will reduce the infection rate among children and help reduce the community spread.
Because of the Covid-19 vaccine, we are all very safe from Covid-19. The number of deaths due to Covid-19 and people relying on ventilators as well as people receiving treatment in ICU have been significantly reduced. Covid-19 is still a serious concern, we still see children suffering from Covid-19 having to be admitted at times. Some of them suffer from fits, as well as pneumonia because of Covid-19. In order to protect them, our advice is that all children five years and above get the Covid-19 vaccine. This will reduce Covid-19 among children and help reduce the spread of Covid-19 within the community.”Dr. Ahmed Faisal, Pediatrician at Indhira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH)
This comes at a time there has been an alarming increase in wide-spreading common cold infections as well as Covid-19 cases.
The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has urged the public to be cautious, issuing some important precautionary measures the public may take to avoid complications from the wide-spreading common cold and Covid-19.
As such, the public has been urged to seek immediate medical assistance and consult a doctor if they are having common cold symptoms such as persistent cough, fever and sneezing for an extensive period or if they are considered high-risk individuals.
The public has also been urged to wear face masks properly if they have symptoms of the common cold, to practice social distancing in public places and to refrain from going to public and crowded locations overall, when exhibiting symptoms.
Further, the public has been pushed to frequently wash their hands with soap and disinfectants to avoid spreading germs from one person to the other. Individuals who are considered high-risk have been urged to wear face masks when visiting crowded public places.
At a time the authority has rolled out Covid-19 vaccination for children as well, the public has been urged to complete their vaccine doses as soon as possible to prevent complications from the virus. As such, those who are eligible to receive booster doses have been instructed to do so without delay.
HPA has urged caution as common cold is also a respiratory disease that can quickly spread if within proximity.
The latest figures publicized by the public health authority on Monday confirmed that Covid-19 cases being reported from the congested capital of Maldives, Malé City, are continuing to spiral.
As such, over the past week, Maldives confirmed 84 new Covid-19 infections, out of which 73 cases were confirmed from the Greater Malé Region and the remaining 11 were detected from others including industrial islands, liveaboard vessels and resorts. HPA also recorded 17 new hospital admissions over the past week.
Maldives began observing a surge in the weekly Covid-19 numbers reported across the country over the past three weeks. The country’s Covid-19 case tally currently sits at 185,894.
Maldives reported its first Covid-19 fatality in April 2020. The coronavirus death toll currently sits at 311.
Statistics indicate that the total number of first doses administered nationwide has risen to 399,315 with this development, with 385,147 people having completed both doses so far. 167,677 people have received booster doses so far, with 1,543 having received their second booster doses.
Another surge in Covid-19 cases comes at a time the country is powering through the fasting month of Ramadan. This is the fourth Ramadan Maldives is observing since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in 2020.
With the alarming increase in the caseload once again, the public is advised to keep public and open spaces clean and always disinfected, on a regular basis.
Maldives has been experiencing a surge in common cold cases due to the adverse effects of the severe weather conditions. Hence, it is important to follow safety precautions. As places that provide healthcare services are usually filled with high-risk individuals, HPA has urged the people to wear face masks when visiting hospitals health centers and clinics for the safety of everyone. The public health authority has also urged the people to limit hospital visitations and not visit hospitals unless necessary.
