The Health Emergency Operations Center (HEOC) said they had noticed a carelessness on behalf of the public in adhering to Covid-19 health and safety regulations as the number of new cases being reported in the Maldives decrease.
Speaking to the press, a Technical Advisor for HEOC Dr. Ahmed Shaheed said that some of the more developed countries in the world had been forced to reinstate lockdowns as the virus continues to spread aggressively, and that concerns were at an all-time high following the discovery of a more virulent variant of Covid-19 last month.
He added that healthcare systems in some countries had reached the overload with some hospitals being forced to stop elective procedures and non-emergency care to treat the heavy influx of patients with Covid-19. Dr. Shaheed said that this was the worst-case scenario that authorities and healthcare workers had been trying to prevent since the discovery of the first case in Maldives, and that combined efforts had resulted in the nation going through a second peak without having to re-instate lockdown.
Dr. Shaheed also acknowledged the public support for and adherence to the health and safety regulations put in place, saying that caution had helped bring down the number of new cases being reported across the country, and encouraged citizens to not be careless so that the Covid-19 virus could remain contained.
We have observed carelessness in adhering to existing regulations. Following precautions is the most important thing we can do to keep the number of new cases low. There are a huge number of tourists visiting the country during at the time, and people who have travelled abroad for holidays have now begun returning as well. As it stands, it is important to give extra care to follow Covid-19 health and safety regulations. It is critical for individuals experiencing symptoms to visit flu clinics at the earliest; we have noticed the number of people visiting flu clinics in Male' and in the islands have decreased. It's not that people are not experiencing flu symptoms as much anymore, its that they are declining to go to flu clinics despite having symptoms,"Dr. Ahmed Shaheed
In addition to this, Dr. Shaheed stressed the importance of quickly getting tested for Covid-19 if an individual is experiencing symptoms of the virus, saying that the reason many people do not get tested is because they do not have apparent symptoms. He said that people might not get tested as they disregard a light cough, fevers and sore throats as normal colds.
We keep highlighting the importance of testing due to many factors. Firstly, testing is for an individuals own protection as well as the health and safety of the community. One of the fundamentals of controlling the spread of the COvid-19 is to detect and isolate the virus as quickly as possible. That is how we can stop transmissions. So, it is an individual’s responsibility as a citizen to go to a flu clinic and tested even if they have very slight symptoms as it is not just for their health and safety alone."Dr. Ahmed Shaheed
Describing a scenario where the number of new cases being reported does increase, Dr. Shaheed said that there would not be much danger for low-risk individuals, but that a widespread community transmission could result in multiple fatalities. He said that the elderly and people receiving treatment for other health complications experience an elevated risk for a fatal infection, and urged the public to be attentive and do their part as individuals.
