Time to Pull the Emergency Brake

DIDIE SW

Didie SW

Some time ago, I received news that a fellow medical doctor who happens to have worked at the hospital where I served part-time, had just lost her mother and husband to Covid-19.

She herself is struggling to escape from the Covid-19 virus infection at one of the Covid-19 referral hospitals in Jakarta.

In another case, my junior, an internist who just completed his consultation, is in critical condition with a ventilator at a hospital, also due to Covid-19.

In the last few weeks we have heard of specialists and general practitioners dying due to Covid-19, even though some of them had received vaccination.

Hospitals are now becoming incapacitated. Yesterday, a patient of mine, who is on duty at the Jakarta Regional Hospital, said that the quarantine beds at the hospital were fully occupied and started to turn to other hospitals for the patient treatment.

Also read:

> “Long Covid”, the Covid-19 Aftermath

> Mobility Restrictions, Mass Vaccination Called for

If the condition continues to worsen, the story will repeat itself -- patients dying in the emergency unit room because the hospital running out isolation room and being unable to rush the patients elsewhere either because other hospitals also being overbooked.

The Jakarta health office has appealed to hospital authorities to increase the capacity of isolation rooms for Covid-19 patients. However, the increased capacity of isolation room may cost a reduction in treatment rooms for non-Covid-19 patients.

It seems that the difficulties in providing isolation rooms in Jakarta will continue to set in. Some time ago I had a patient with a high fever and cough. The antigen swab test gave a positive result but the patient could not be hospitalized because the isolation ward was full.

Several hospitals have reported that their emergency unit (IGD) wards have been converted into treatment rooms for Covid-19 patients. Hospital incapacitation look to be ensuing, given the rising positivity rate in the capital city, which has reached 15.6 percent.

I have another story. Some time ago, my niece came late to attend her sister\'s wedding ceremony because she had had to wait for the results of her PCR swab test she was administered to following the arrival of a guest at her house. The guest came along with a child, who was later found positive for Covid-19, reportedly infected from their household assistant who had just returned from hometown.

On the other hand, the lurking newly mutated Covid-19 virus has also gripped our worries. Information from Bangkalan, Madura, has revealed that some patients were found to have contracted the B117 variant or Alfa mutant virus.

As disclosed by researchers from the Institute of Tropical Disease (ITD) Airlangga University, the B117 found from the patient samples in Bangkalan is suspected to have the potency of rapid transmission.

The spike in positive cases in Kudus, which has also taken casualties among medical personnel, has been attributable to the circulation of the Delta variant from India.

Also read:

> COVID-19 Spike Caused by New Variants

> Social Restrictions Need to be Reimposed

The shortage in health workers due to the collapse of many of them has forced the local administration to resort to volunteers, who are called in from other areas. In addition to the emergency provision of the health workers, facilities, infrastructure and the availability of medicines must also be closely monitored.

What happens in society?

All the way to the office/hospital and back home for the past few days, I have found nothing is changing. The roads in Jakarta, especially the sections that are usually congested, remain congested. Some people on the roadside do not wear masks.

Of course I hope they always keep healthy because if they are infected with Covid-19 with symptoms and required to be hospitalized during the ongoing hospitalization situation, it will be difficult for them to find a room.

Likewise, public assemblies remain ubiquitous, one of which was recently seen at a McDonald\'s outlet triggered by the franchise’s promotional collaboration with South Korean boyband Bangtan Boys (BTS), with the launched product of BTS Meal.

KOMPAS/RADITYA HELABUMI

A long line of online motorcycle taxis at the entrance to the McDonald\'s Green Garden fast food restaurant, West Jakarta, Wednesday (9/6/2021). A number of McDonald\'s outlets are filled with online motorcycle taxis from various applicators who will take orders for BTS Meal, a menu that has just been launched in collaboration with McDonald\'s Indonesia and one of the K-pop BTS groups.

That has become a concern for us. Confidence that the product would be highly appealing to the people did not go well with the expected anticipative measures by the food outlet about the potentially imminent crowding.

We are thankful that several local governments have responded quickly by closing some of the food outlets and let’s see if new clusters may occur as a result of the BTS Meal crowding cases.

BTS should be aware about their popularity among Indonesian people and the repercussion of public curiosity that craving for their product would result in a crowding and that new clusters of Covid-19 might arise.

While the development of Covid-19 tends to be worsening, so far there have been no constructive measures yet to overcome the problem. Malaysia and Singapore have acted swiftly to impose a lockdown. Malaysia has even extended it until the end of June 2021.

Also read:

> Prevent Huge Spikes in COVID-19 Cases

> Surge in Cases Unstoppable

I hope that the local governments, especially Jakarta, will decide to re-implement the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) that have proved to effective in curbing the spread of Covid-19 in the community.

Politicians also deserve to be reminded to refrain from rushing a discussion about prospective candidates for the 2024 presidential election. Moreover, among the candidates from the political parties are also regional heads. They look busy working to build political clout, which has gained large media coverage.

I hope that amid their rattling political maneuvers for support, which is initiated as part of their preparations for the 2024 presidential election, they will continue to talk about the best way to overcome the spread of Covid-19 in the community.

They are expected to carry on with the people\'s mandate to find the best solution for the people, because the people\'s trusted aspirations must be fought for so that society becomes better.

KOMPAS/DEONISIA ARLINTA

Ari Fahrial Syam

They must be reminded that they will account their responsibilities before God Almighty. We all at this time must focus our attention on dealing with Covid-19.

We do not want health services to collapse again due to failed control at the upstream level. Hopefully we are all mindful to try to prevent the situation from worsening further. Let\'s fight Covid-19 together.

Ari Fahrial Syam, Professor of Internal Diseases at the University of Indonesia’s School of Medicine and Clinical Practices.

This article was translated by Musthofid.