Strengthen Tracing Efforts

The number of examined COVID-19 cases has continued to decline in the past weeks. This may indicate that tracing efforts have yet to be optimal.

KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI

Visitors queue to enter at the east entrance of Taman Impian Jaya Ancol, North Jakarta, Thursday (29/10/2020). Long holiday are used by residents to travel to these beach resorts.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The number of suspected COVID-19 cases has gradually decreased in the past three weeks. Such a condition could increase the risk of COVID-19 infections as many positive cases might have not been traced due to suboptimal tracing efforts.

On Monday (2/11/2020), COVID-19 Task Force reported that additional 20,146 people had been tested on that day. This figure, however, is still far below the target set by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, namely testing 30,000 people daily.

On Nov. 2, 2,696 new cases were recorded, bringing the total tally to 412,784 cases in the country. As many as 341,942 people have recovered from the disease, while 13,943 patients have died.

Also read: Travelers Test Positive for Covid-19

Meanwhile, according to the Health Ministry’s report on Nov. 1, there has been a decrease in the testing of suspected cases in the last three weeks. From Oct. 12 to 18, for instance, the number of cases tested is estimated to be around 0.82 cases per thousand population per week. This number dwindled further from Oct. 19 to 25, during which only 0.74 cases per thousand population were tested. From Oct. 26 to Nov. 1, the number of cases tested per thousand population had dropped to 0.62 cases.

By comparing the number of positive cases and the number of tests conducted (positivity rate), the country’s infection rate is estimated to be approximately 14.2 percent. The ideal rate set by the World Health Organization (WHO) is five percent.

Also read: Anticipating an Increase in Covid-19 Cases

“Testing problems might be caused by testing activities in laboratories. There are laboratories which do not report the number of cases that they have tested,” said Indonesian Public Health Association (IAKMI) chairman Ede Surya Darmawan on Monday (2/11) in Jakarta.

Kompas/Wawan H Prabowo

Medical officers take throat fluid samples during a free drive thru swab test at the Genomic Solidarity Indonesia Laboratory (GSI), Cilandak, Jakarta, Monday (11/2/2020). The free test is a joint donation program from the Tanoto Foundation and Temasek Foundation International.

As per Nov. 2, 175 out of 426 laboratories tasked to test COVID-19 cases had yet to report their test results. An evaluation on the monitoring system enforced in laboratories must be carried out so that prevalent challenges, particularly those concerning the reporting of test results, could be intervened.

However, the declining number of tests conducted could be prompted as well by  a decrease of testing activities in laboratories, which, according to Ede, might be due to inaccurate tracing efforts in the public.

Also read: Holiday, COVID and Consistency

“Flawed tracing efforts pose a fundamental problem in controlling COVID-19. A comprehensive improvement and structural change to the health surveillances system at puskesmas (community health centers) must be carried out immediately. In the public health system, 10,135 puskesmas in Indonesia are at the forefront of the country’s pandemic management strategies,” said Ede.

Because of this, despite the recent long weekend, efforts to monitor and record new medical cases, including COVID-19, must not be stopped. If tracing activities are discontinued, testing activities in laboratories would automatically decline and thus hinder the management of the pandemic.

Also read: Awareness more Essential

KOMPAS/ABDULLAH FIKRI ASHRI

Residents visited Pondoh Community Health Center (Puskesmas) in Pondoh Village, Juntinyuat District, Indramayu Regency, West Java, Monday (29/6/2020). The Puskesmas implements health protocols, such as preparing a hand washing area, keeping patient seats apart, and requiring patients to wear masks.

To enhance the public health system, puskesmas’ capacity must be increased. Improvements could be done in several aspects, including the technical aspect, human resources and finance. Currently, puskesmas focus solely on promoting health, while the issue of public health has yet to be prioritized.

Furthermore, increasing the number of human resources who are proficient in the subject of epidemiology is requisite. Another concern is the minimum funding that puskesmas acquire for strengthening its tracing capacity.

Diplomacy

During a press conference, Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto said the government had attempted to solve the problems caused by the pandemic and preserve the public health through various measures, including diplomacy. This is apparent in the government’s cooperation with Japan.

From this cooperation, the Japanese government has reportedly agreed to provide Indonesia an assistance worth 35 million yen. Other assistance includes, among others, the procurement of 12,200 Avigan tablets for clinical trials in Indonesia, 200,000 masks worth Rp 800 million and the procurement of X-ray cars worth Rp 280 billion.