The World Health Organization on Monday revealed that Covid-19 remains a public health emergency. However the pandemic “is probably at a transition stage”.
The pandemic is at a transition point. What does this mean?
On Monday the World Health Organization (WHO) stated the pandemic remains at a “transition point”. In the WHO’s International Health Regulations Emergency Committee meeting on Friday, the pay analyzed data on the pandemic’s current state. “WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus acknowledges the Committee’s views that the COVID-19 pandemic is probably at a transition point and appreciates the advice of the Committee to navigate this transition carefully and mitigate the potential negative consequences,” revealed the statement.
As per Tedros’ speech transcript, there is a high risk of global transmission. This means the coronavirus is classified as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. However, he added the World is in a better position to beat the virus due to advancements in treatment, vaccines, and diagnostics. “As we enter the fourth year of the pandemic, we are certainly in a much better position now than we were a year ago, when the omicron wave was at its peak, and more than 70,000 deaths were being reported to WHO each week,” stated Tedros.
More on the happenings in the WHO meeting
During the meeting, Tedros was urging groups at a higher risk of severe disease to be fully vaccinated Additionally, he encouraged nations to ramp up their testing efforts and use antivirals at an early stage. “When you last met in October, the number of weekly reported deaths was near the lowest since the pandemic began — less than 10 thousand a week. However, since the beginning of December, the number of weekly reported deaths globally has been rising. But the global response remains hobbled because, in too many countries, these powerful, life-saving tools are still not getting to the populations that need them most – especially older people and health workers,” added the chief.
“What we have to remember is the pandemic won’t end on a given day. The metrics around cases, hospitalizations, and deaths are painting a more optimistic picture and we’re seeing more countries getting out of this acute phase,” stated Dr. John Brownstein. Dr. Brownstein is an epidemiologist and chief innovation officer at Boston Children’s Hospital. “If you look at data around deaths, we’re still seeing twice as many people dying from COVID than flu every season and flu is only a quarter of a year, and we’re seeing that number,” he added.