The Trap of a False Sense of Security

The Covid-19 outbreak will only get worse for countries that fail to implement strict health protocols. Indonesia must be careful and not fall into the trap of a false sense of security.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

Medical personnel prepare to administer mass swab testing on employees of a shopping center in the area of Jl. Sudirman, Bogor city, West Java, Monday (13/7/2020). The shopping center was temporarily closed after one of its employees tested positive for the novel coronavirus. The Bogor City Health Office finally held mass swab tests for employees at a number of shopping centers that day.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases is rising globally and the situation will only get worse for countries that fail to implement strict health protocols. Indonesia could be among countries that face severe impacts from the disease, due to increased mobility as social restrictions are eased. Zoning without strict restrictions will only create a false sense of security.

“The [World Health Organization] has warned that the situation could get worse and more time will be needed to resolve this. This can only be resolved globally by mid-next year at the soonest,” Indonesian epidemiologist at Australia’s Griffith University, Dicky Budiman, said on Tuesday (14/7/2020).

Also read : Eight Provinces Declared ‘Priorities’ in Covid-19 Control

Globally, the number of Covid-19 cases has reached 13.2 million and the number of deaths has reached 576,432. WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a video message from Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday that too many countries were headed in the wrong direction and the virus remained public enemy number one. “If basics are not followed, the only way this pandemic is going to go - it is going to get worse and worse and worse,” he said.

Of the 230,000 new cases on Monday, 80 percent was from 10 countries and 50 percent was from two countries, namely the US and Brazil. The US now has 3.4 million cases and 138,273 deaths, while Brazil has 1.8 million cases and 72,950 cases.

Also read: Togetherness in the Face of Covid-19

KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI

A law and order officer receives an ID card belonging to a resident who violated transitional large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) in Tomas Market, Cideng, Central Jakarta, Monday (13/7/2020). In the implementation of the transitional PSBB in Jakarta that has just been extended, some residents are still not aware of the importance of obeying the basic rules of preventing the spread of Covid-19 in public places, such as wearing masks.

Data from the National Covid-19 Mitigation Task Force shows that Indonesia has 78,572 cases with 1,591 latest new daily cases. There are 3,710 deaths, with 54 latest new deaths. Indonesia ranks 26th in the number of cases globally.

“Our testing capacity is increasing. Consequentially, the number of cases is rising. However, Indonesia’s positivity rate remains above 10 percent and even touches an average of 11 percent, showing that many cases remain undetected,” Dicky said.

Also read: The Participation of the People is the Key

In line with WHO standards, the safe range of positivity rate is five percent at most with testing rate of 1 in 1,000 people per week. Studies show that positivity rate above 10 percent means that the real number of cases is 10 times the number of found cases. High positivity rate shows that testing capacity is far from ideal.

KOMPAS/RADITYA HELABUMI

Cempaka Putih Market was closed for three days until Wednesday (15/7/2020) after 41 traders tested positive to Covid-19. A number of markets in Jakarta are still COVID-19 clusters. The location of a number of markets make them vulnerable to the spread of Covid-19.

False security

However, Covid-19 Task Force expert team chair Wiku Adisasmito said that the situation was becoming increasingly controlled due to reductions in the number of Covid-19 high-risk zones. A mapping of Covid-19 risk zones as of 12 July 2020 found only 31 high-risk regencies and cities. Attention is focused on eight provinces, namely East Java, Jakarta, South Sulawesi and Central Java.

Dicky said zoning without strict interregional restrictions would only lead to a false sense of security. Furthermore, a majority of regions have yet to meet the minimum requirements for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing. Information on worldometers.info shows that Indonesia is ranked second from the bottom among 26 countries with the most cases. Indonesia has 4,011 tests per one million population, better only than Egypt.

Also read : Raising Public Awareness on the Risks of Covid-19

Meanwhile, the government has updated its Covid-19 prevention and mitigation guideline. A number of indicators have been replaced. The government will no longer use the terms person under surveillance (ODP), patient under surveillance (PDP) and asymptomatic person (OTG). Death reports will no longer only comprises those of confirmed Covid-19 but also those alleged to be infected.

The guideline update can be found in Health Minister’s Regulation No. 413/2020. Government spokesperson for Covid-19 related matters, Achmad Yurianto, said that ODP and PDP were replaced with the term “suspect”. There is also the term “probable”, namely persons showing Covid-19 clinical symptoms but without PCR test result. The new guideline says that checking for Covid-19 suspected patients use molecular rapid test and PCR test. Rapid test is not used for diagnostics but instead only for screening and epidemiology research.

KOMPAS/MEGANDIKA WICAKSONO

Stalls in a shopping complex at Wage Market, Purwokerto, Banyumas, Central Java, are closed on Tuesday (14/7/2020). The market was closed for the three days after a trader tested positive for COVID-19.

(TAN/AIK/SPW/DIV/TAM/RTW/NSA/DIT/SYA/BRO)