The Fast Handling of COVID-19

Public anxiety due to the rising number of people infected with COVID-19 or the new coronavirus need to be controlled immediately so as to prevent its impact from widening.

KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI

Officers from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spray disinfectant liquid at Gambir Station, Central Jakarta, Thursday (12/3/2020). BNPB took this step following President Joko Widodo\'s order to clean up at public facilities to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has issued Presidential Decree No. 7/ 2020 concerning the Task Force for the 2019 Acceleration of Coronavirus Mitigation, which is directly led by the President. Head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency Doni Monardo is appointed as the daily executor.

The formation of this task force answers community anxieties regarding the handling and prevention of COVID-19 transmission. The task force is also present on time. The director of the World Health Organization (WHO) in a letter recommended that President Jokowi take a number of countermeasures, including by declaring a national emergency for COVID-19.

Also read : Fight the Pandemic

The government announced the first COVID-19 positive case on March 2. Within 11 days thereafter, the number of positive cases reached 69 people, four of whom died, while five cases recovered.

Learning from the experiences of other countries, the increase in the number of positive cases occurs exponentially. However, the number of cases that died is around 3.5 percent. There is no better way to prevent transmission than by reducing contact with those who have been infected.

Information that is often conveyed to the public is washing hands frequently, not touching the face area and wearing a face mask when infected with the flu.

Although the government has formed a task force and appointed a spokesperson to inform the public on the development of the spread of COVID-19 regularly twice a day, questions surrounding new cases continue to haunt the public.

The question is mainly where and how to mitigate the outbreak. Thus far, information that is often conveyed to the public is washing hands frequently, not touching the face area and wearing a face mask when infected with the flu.

KOMPAS/SEKAR GANDHAWANGI

Screens display thermal scanner information at Terminal 3 of Soekarno-Hatta Airport, Tangerang, Thursday (12/3/2020). This tool, which detects the body temperature of people passing by, will give a warning if it detects temperatures above 38 degrees Celsius.

This information is useful and needs to be conveyed, but it is not adequate to prevent transmission. The transmission occurs due to contact with an infected person. Therefore, the question arises whether there will be cities that are restricted by the traffic of people and goods to prevent transmission, stopping teaching and learning activities at schools and universities, to limit the crowds.

What is also questioned by the community is the readiness of health facilities; adequate number of health workers, medicine and equipment; and a system to track those who are infected.

With the formation of this task force, we want the direction and how to deal with CO theVID-19 outbreak to be clearer, more focused, and the public needs to be well informed. Coordination in the handling of COVID-19 among ministries, institutions, as well as central and regional governments will become more focused. Community participation can also be increased.

We can learn from other countries\' experiences. If the handling meets the international standards, we can protect the trust of the domestic and international community and the negative impacts of the COVID-19 virus, especially on the economy, can be overcome.