Muscat": Dr Ahmed Mohammed al Saeedi, Minister of Health (member of the Supreme Committee tasked with tackling developments resulting from coronavirus), has said that the health sector in the Sultanate is getting drained due to the current wave of Covid-19 infection which, he observed, “is considered the worst since the outbreak of the pandemic.
Yet, extensive efforts have been undertaken within the health sector, with the working teams operating for 18 months, non-stop, on a daily basis, the minister added.
Dr Ahmed valued the enduring support of His Majesty Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik to the health sector and His Majesty’s directives to the Covid-19 Supreme Committee.
The minister made the statement during the 24th press conference of the Supreme Committee, held on Thursday at the premises of the Ministry of Education.
Most mortality cases due to Covid-19 in April were deaths with the segment of 60-year-old people who refused to take the vaccine, said Dr Ahmed, who stressed that perpetrators of rumours against the vaccine will be punished by law.
The minister hoped that the Sultanate will receive about 3.2 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines by the end of September.
“Encouraging people to follow the procedures that protect them from the virus is our Islamic, national and professional duty,” said Dr Ahmed in response to criticism staged at the Covid-19 Supreme Committee. He added that the Committee will address the concerns of some of those who refuse to take the vaccine.
The minister pointed out that, since the outbreak of the pandemic, government health establishments had less than 148 beds in Intensive Care Units (ICUs). “The number of those beds multiplied scores of times, thanks to the unrelenting support of His Majesty Sultan Haitham and the sincere efforts of health workers.
Quoting statistics, the minister said that the number of Covid-19 patients admitted to ICUs stood at more than 460, while 2,064 doctors have been attending the cases since the start of the pandemic. Despite the shortage of workers in this sector, the Sultanate has higher workforce capacity, compared to some advanced countries, said Dr Ahmed.
In the second batch of the National Covid-19 Immunization Campaign, the Ministry added another segment—pregnant women, who are given priority in vaccination due to their delicate condition, said Dr Ahmed, who pointed to the presence of 40 pregnant women inflicted with Covid-19 in ICUs. The minister advised pregnant women to take the vaccines at the nearest centres providing the service.
Asked about the tourism season in Dhofar Governorate, Dr Ahmed said that a technical team tasked with studying the issue will submit its report to the Supreme Covid-19 Committee shortly. Accordingly, a decision will be taken about whether or not to allow visits to Dhofar.
The implementation of full lockdown depends on the epidemiological situation in the Sultanate, said the minister, who pointed out that partial closure of Dhofar Governorate yielded positive results earlier.
The minister said that most countries in the world keep conducting Covid-19 tests on vaccinated people because, he explained, vaccinations do not provide 100% protection against infection with the disease. The only difference is that, when people get the vaccine, the infection will be less severe, said the minister, adding that the Sultanate will not exempt anyone from vaccination and that a strategy is in place to ensure this objective.
The minister added that the number of oxygen condensation apparatuses stands at 85. “Oxygen equipment production units have a capacity to meet our needs”, said the minister. He refuted claims of shortage of ventilation machines in the Sultanate, saying that as many as 1,144 ventilation apparatuses exist in the Sultanate and cover all needs.
Dr Ahmed said that the Sultanate started to communicate with vaccine producing companies since mid-2020 and was among the first group of countries that joined the Covid-19 Global Access Agency (Covax). Unfortunately, the delivery of agreed quotas got delayed, said the minister, hoping that the Sultanate will receive more than 6 million Covid-19 doses by the end of this year, to cover all target segments. --ONA
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