The Peninsula
In a press conference held today Chair of the National Strategic Group on COVID-19 and Head of the Infectious Diseases Division at Hamad Medical Corporation Dr. Abdullatif Al Khal said that there is a worrying trend of increase in the number of Covid-19 case among Qatar nationals and expat professionals.
He said that the increase in infections after the Eid Al-Adha holidays is bigger than the increase that happened after Eid Al-Fitr.
New cases increased after a period of decline due to the Eid al-Adha holidays and failure to adhere to preventive measures during family visits and social gatherings, Dr Khal added.He said that an increase in infections may lead to a delay in entering the fourth phase of lifting restrictions.
Vaccination against COVID-19 is expected to be available by the end of this year or by the beginning of next year. Until safe and effective vaccinations is available, everyone should adhere to the safety precautions, he said at the press conference.
Dr. Hamad Al Rumaihi, Director of the Health Protection and Communicable Diseases Control Department at MoPH and co-chair of the National Pandemic Preparation Committee was also present at the press conference.
SUMMARY OF KEY MESSAGES
- The measures put in place have succeeded in lowering the number of new daily cases over the past two months.
- At the peak of the virus in Qatar, we saw more than 2,000 new confirmed cases a day, yet for the past few weeks the number has constantly remained under 500.
- This is a considerable achievement but the evidence from countries around the world shows that it is very difficult to completely eradicate the virus - we expect a low, but consistent, number of new cases to be identified each day for many months.
- It is clear that the world will be living with COVID-19 for some time to come.
- Schoolchildren should wear masks inside classrooms.
- Although we are lifting restrictions across the country and many aspects of our daily lives are returning to some sort of normal, we must not become complacent.
- A second wave of COVID-19 is a very real threat - as several other countries around the world are now experiencing.
- We are mid-way through Phase 3 of the lifting of restrictions, but progression to Phase 4 relies on continued improvements in the number of new daily cases and unless we adhere to all preventive measures there is a real risk of returning to earlier
- Despite the total number of new cases declining considerably in recent weeks and months, there has been a worrying trend of increasing cases within the Qatari national and expat professional population groups.
- This is due to a minority of people within these population groups who continue to ignore preventive advice - putting themselves and those around them at risk.
- We have seen repeated examples during both Eid holidays and throughout Ramadan of the virus spreading within families due to one or two individuals not adhering to social and physical distancing guidelines.
- This is of particular concern as it is the elderly and those with chronic diseases who are most at risk of serious complications from COVID-19, and the Qatari and expat professional population makes up a large proportion of these vulnerable people.