ER
A NUMBER of tips so that people can spend the Christmas and New Year holidays safely amidst the recent increase in COVID-19 cases.
According to the Director of Postgraduate Studies at YARSI University, Prof. Tjandra Yoga Aditama, one of the tips is to be vaccinated according to existing procedures, for example for elderly people with accompanying or comorbid diseases and other high risks, it is best to get a repeat vaccination 6-12 months after the last vaccination and this is in accordance with the Organization’s recommendations. World Health (WHO) early December 2023.
He, through his written statement, Saturday (12/23), 2023, reminded those who have never been vaccinated so far to get vaccinated immediately. Next about masks. According to Tjandra, masks will be good for those who are sick with respiratory tract infections, the elderly and those with comorbidities.
“Especially if you are in a crowd, especially if you are in a closed room,” he said.
Tjandra referred to the Singapore Government’s policy which uses the word strongly encouraged to wear masks for those in closed crowds and for people who are not sick but meet vulnerable groups.
On the other hand, he added, the habit of washing hands needs to be maintained because this is important for preventing not only COVID-19 but also various other infectious diseases, both respiratory and digestive system diseases.
Apart from that, healthy living habits must also be maintained, such as consuming nutritious food, physical activity and exercise, getting enough rest and so on.
“Because this will guarantee better body resistance to various diseases, including of course COVID-19,” said Tjandra.
Other things that he thinks are important include following news from official sources and not just believing what is there.
Tjandra said the current increase in COVID-19 cases could be caused by a number of things, namely a decrease in population immunity in general, due to low scientific transmission in the field, and the long distance since receiving the last vaccination.
Apart from that, other causes of the increase include the increase in year-end travel and the role of new variants such as JN.1, which since December 18 was declared a Variant of Interest (VOI) by the World Health Organization (WHO).
On the other hand, added Tjandra, COVID-19 is still present in the world, and of course there may be an increase in cases from time to time.
According to him, scientific data from around the world shows that the majority of COVID-19 cases today are relatively milder than in previous years.
However, if there are suspicions, such as complaints or clear contact, then people can check themselves. At home I even provide an antigen test so that if I or my in-laws suspect COVID-19, they can immediately be tested. [antaranews/photo special]
