Beating the virus

Monday, 9th August, 2021

We have got what we asked for. The viral tsunami has made landfall. A surge in Covid-19 infections is snuffing out lives at the rate of about 100 a day. Hospitals are facing a capacity crunch, and mortuaries are packed to the rafters. Unclaimed remains of Covid victims are being buried/cremated by the state. Crematoria in some parts of the country are kept open round the clock. The prognosis of morbidity and mortality rates is even gloomier. Unless stern action is taken to contain the pandemic, the death rate is likely to double within the next few weeks, health experts warn.

If the country had been closed during the Sinhala and Tamil New Year, a few months ago, this situation would not have come about. Most of the current infections have been traced to the explosive spread of the pandemic in April. We never learn from our blunders.

A few Covid-19 deaths caused the country to be locked down for weeks, last year. Today, the government is determined to keep the country open despite the loss of about 100 lives a day—for obvious reasons. Another round of lockdowns will send the economy into a tailspin, making pandemic control even more difficult.

The government is under heavy pressure to impose lockdowns again, but such action will reduce many more people to penury almost overnight. Job losses have already increased exponentially, and many people are struggling to keep the wolf from the door. The country now finds itself between a rock and a hard place. But the main problem—the surge in infections—is not without a solution, which has, in fact, been staring us in the face since the detection of the first coronavirus infection in this country.

The Delta variant of coronavirus is capable of many things. It is far more transmissible than other variants and causes disease severity among many more people than in the past, necessitating hospitalisation and high-flow oxygen dependency. This has resulted in an increase in the death toll. The Delta variant is also capable of breaking the vaccine barrier and causing breakthrough infections. (The rich nations are mulling over administering the third booster shot while the vast majority of people in the Global South are waiting for the first vaccine dose.) But the Achilles heel of the Delta variant is that it cannot beat the WHO-recommended preventive measures, the proper implementation of which is therefore the solution. Unfortunately, nobody seems to follow the health regulations strictly, in this country. Most Sri Lankans do not maintain physical distancing or wear masks in the prescribed manner or wash/sanitise their hands. If these simple methods are followed, we will be able to curb the spread of the pandemic without having to contend with lockdowns again.

The need to redouble preventive efforts to beat the virus cannot be overemphasised. Why the government has not banned mass gatherings such as wedding receptions, etc., is the question. Those who are dependent on such social events for a living will be affected by a blanket ban, but it is wiser to provide economic relief to them than to allow large gatherings where people ignore health regulations and endanger their lives as well as others’. Weddings, more often than not, lead to infections clusters. Movement restrictions will have to be imposed where necessary, and remote work encouraged as far as possible. Thankfully, teachers have suspended their street demonstrations, but the blame for the rapid increase in infections should be apportioned to them and the government, which has driven trade unions to conduct protests, whose cumulative impact on public health will be felt soon. Among the measures that have been adopted in other countries to prevent the Delta variant infections are mandatory double-masking and the two-metre distancing rule. We must also adopt them, and bring in new laws and regulations to take stringent action against noncompliance. The health and law enforcement authorities have to get tough with those who flout health regulations. There is no other way to prevent mass burials.

The virus can be beaten decisively if we get our act together.