Covid: Deaths increased rapidly during fourth wave

ELLANIE SMIT WINDHOEKMore than 3 700 Namibians have already died from Covid-19, with the number of deaths increasing exponentially during the fourth wave, latest statistics provided by the health ministry indicate. At the latest Covid-19 briefing last week, health minister Dr Kalumbi Shangula said the fourth wave of Covid-19, driven by the Omicron variant, started on 29 November 2021 in Namibia, and cases peaked on 19 December 2021.Cases have since started to decline from 26 December 2021, with an average of 450 per day.“From 16 December 2021 to 11 January, a period of 27 days covering the current dispensations, a total of 68 975 samples were tested, of which 18 586 new cases were confirmed - giving a positive ratio of 27% compared to 11% positivity ratio during the preceding period.”He said these figures indicate that the number of tests conducted increased by 37.2% and number of new cases increased by 69.8%, while the positivity ratio increased by 59.3%.“Correspondingly, the number of deaths increased exponentially from 13 deaths reported during the preceding 27 days to 181 deaths reported during the period of 27 days during this dispensation, an increment of 92.8%.”The number of inpatients increased to an average of 362 per day as compared to 198 during the preceding 27 days, Shangula said.As of last Tuesday, Namibia had recorded a total of 153 290 new confirmed Covid-19 cases, out of the 893 635 samples tested.This translates into an additional 19 846 new confirmed cases since the last briefing on 14 December 2021.Reinfections a concernShangula expressed concern with the increasing number of people who were getting reinfected with the virus.According to him, a total of 1 876 reinfections have been recorded since 8 December last year.He further said 140 973 recoveries were reported, translating into a recovery rate of 92%.“Active cases have also increased threefold to 10 418 compared to 3 392 during the last briefing. Another 183 lives were lost, bringing the number of deaths to 3 761 since the beginning of the pandemic.”By Tuesday, 411 163 people had received their first dose of Covid-19 vaccination nationally, translating to 22.7% of the target population.Collectively, 348 552 eligible people are fully vaccinated. Shangula added that the daily vaccination uptake increased by 52.7% from 2 112 on 13 December 2021 to 4 466 on 11 January.He added that following the introduction of booster doses, 8 290 people have received an additional dose thus far.Vaccine hesitancyPresident Hage Geingob said vaccine hesitancy persists and as of 11 January, the coverage of fully vaccinated populations remained low in the following regions: Zambezi at 6%, Ohangwena, Omusati and Oshikoto at 9% and Oshana at 10%. The regions with the highest fully vaccinated population coverage are Hardap at 23%, Kavango West and Omaheke at 19%, and Kunene and //Karas at 18% each. Khomas recorded a fully vaccinated population coverage of only 17%.Shangula said an analysis of the Covid-19 statistics indicate that from 1 to 11 January, 81% of new infections, 97% of admissions to hospitals, 94% of ICU admissions and 91% of deaths are of unvaccinated individuals.Meanwhile, public health measures were also announced and these will run from 16 January to 15 February.No changes were made to public gatherings, curfew, education or restrictions related to alcohol, business operations, public transport and Covid-19 rapid antigen tests.Shangula said the number of spectators at sporting events should remain aligned with the regulation on public gatherings, where the limit is 200 persons per event.He added that fully vaccinated Namibians, permanent residents and truck drivers will no longer be required to present a negative PCR test result upon entry into Namibia. They can enter the country at any time with a valid and authentic vaccination card.“For all other categories of travellers, including truck drivers who are not fully vaccinated, the validity of a negative PCR Covid-19 test results remains 72 hours.”ellanie@namibiansun.com

Covid: Deaths increased rapidly during fourth wave

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Namibian Sun 2022-07-04

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Covid: Deaths increased rapidly during fourth wave

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Namibian Sun 2022-07-04

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