Global Courant
The board of directors of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Guatemala shared a statement expressing concern due to the increase in covid-19 cases in recent weeks in the country.
Said statement was published by the entity on June 17 through its social networks, and also adds a series of recommendations to the health authorities and the Guatemalan population to prevent the covid-19 virus from spreading further.
The increase is notorious in the graphs of the last weeks that are shown in the Covid-19 Data Board of the Ministry of Health.
For example, on May 2, 132 new cases were reported, and on June 14, there were 452. In addition, 4,163 active coronavirus infections are registered in Guatemala.
“We manifest concern about the increase in cases of Covid-19 in recent weeks, according to the Covid-19 Health Alert Board, which establishes that 74 municipalities are on orange alert, 263 on yellow alert and 3 on red alert,” the statement begins. of the institution.
The school points out that the cases of covid-19 will increase between the months of June and August 2023, mainly due to “the low coverage and lack of access to updated vaccines, especially for the most vulnerable population”.
The College of Physicians emphasizes that the increase in cases is also due to the “lag in vaccination coverage”, since it ensures that 51% of the total population has received a dose of the vaccine against covid-19, while 41% have received two.
“SIn the lack of clarity of a plan that responds to their improvement, it is not surprising that an outbreak of the disease occurs again, with an escalation in the incidence of cases ”, indicates the school.
Regarding the third dose of the vaccine, the College of Physicians assures that only 21% of the total population has received the booster dose, and that the majority received it more than a year ago.
“Although it does not have the severity that it had in previous years, an accumulation of potential susceptibles that can present the disease is being created,” the statement continues.
recommendations
Given the current situation in the country regarding covid-19, the College of Physicians and Surgeons lists a series of recommendations for the health authorities and for the population.
For example, one of them is the reinforcement of prevention measures on a continuous basis, thus preventing the population from suffering “medium to long-term” consequences derived from the disease such as hospitalization, death, or sequelae of prolonged covid.
“We call on the Guatemalan population to continue with prevention measures; hand washing with soap and water, physical distancing and the use of a mask in poorly ventilated or crowded places, a highly important preventive measure to avoid the increase in covid-19 infections, “says the entity.
Other of the recommendations listed in the statement is to provide the population with access to tests that facilitate the diagnosis of covid-19, as well as the “financing, acquisition, access, equitable and updated distribution of the vaccine, especially in the population of risk”.
