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One month after recovering from the dreadful Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), former presidential aide, Dr Doyin Okupe has said the government needs to treat health workers better and employ more hands and temporary staff to reach out and manage patients on self isolation and in special outpatient clinics.
Okupe, who himself and his wife were discharged after testing negative twice for the virus in May, gave the advice on Sunday, while stressing that public awareness and education about the COVID-19 pandemic need to be intensified.
“Shall we worry about COVID-19 rapidly rising figures? Yes and no! Number of affected cases is determined by the prevalence of infection in the community and the number of tests carried out. If the prevalence remains constant but number of tests carried out in the community increases then figures of affected persons definitely will increase and so also number of new cases.
“This scenario is likely to be what is happening now in this communal stage of the pandemic. Secondly the number of deaths have consistently hovered between 2 – 3% which conforms with the global average & expected fatality of the infection.
“Without gainsaying, the incidence will be on the rise. Perhaps what needs to be done is to seriously canvass for the elderly and people with existing illnesses to self impose movement limitations on themselves and take active steps to boost their immunity.
“Empirical evidence continue to confirm that within the youths, 25yrs to 40-45yrs, who constitute a clear majority of the affected persons, fatality is significantly low and recovery is very fast and high in numbers.
In some cases the course of illness is transient.
“We will need to stop admitting asymptomatic patients into isolation centres but rather treat, monitor and attend to them in Special OUT PATIENTS CLINICS.
“We then attend to more serious and co morbidity cases at our isolation centres.The obvious truth is that more and more members will catch the infections and will recover fully some with treatments others without.
“Ultimately we will develop Herd immunity and just live with this illness while we move on with our lives.
“Government need to treat health workers better. Employ more hands and temporary staffs to reach out & manage patients on self isolation and in special outpatient clinics. Public awareness & education need to be intensified.
“There is light at the end of this Tunnel,” Okupe submitted.