Bahrain health officials stressed the social and medical importance of adhering to the precautionary measures issued by the competent authorities to mitigate the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19).

Chief of Medical Services at Salmaniya Medical Complex Dr Nabeel Ahmed Al Asheeri, member of the National Medical Team to fight COVID-19, urged that all community members should comply with the instructions that ban gatherings to avoid infection or transmission to contacts.

Adhering to the official directives and not being complacent in implementing all the recommended instructions issued by the National Medical Team will lead to a reduction in the number of existing cases resulting from contacts, he said.

Meanwhile, over 20 million registered cases of COVID-19 is estimated to be reported this week along with 750,000 deaths according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

“Whether countries or regions have successfully eliminated the virus, suppressed transmission to a low level, or are still in the midst of a major outbreak; now is the time to do it all, invest in the basics of public health and we can save both lives and livelihoods,” said WHO director-general Dr Tedros in a press briefing.

The ACT-Accelerator has already harnessed the international public health ecosystem in a unique way of working, with early proof of its potential. The accelerator supported vaccines are in Phase 2/3 trials. A Global Vaccines Facility is engaging over 160 countries.

The first therapy for severe COVID – dexamethasone - is in scale-up. Dozens of other promising therapies are under analysis. Over 50 diagnostics are in evaluation, including potentially game-changing rapid antigen tests.

And a comprehensive framework for allocating these scarce tools for the greatest global impact is under consultation. The coming 3 months present a crucial window of opportunity to scale-up the work of the ACT-Accelerator for global impact.

SOURCE: ALBILAD