Former DGHS Dr. Jasinghe insists on not lowering our guard till COVID-19 is eradicated

By Ifham Nizam

All health measures should be continued to control the transmission of the coronavirus from person to person, former Director General of Health Services Dr. Anil Jasinghe warned. Secretary to the Environment Ministry Dr. Jasinghe said that despite the fact that the Covid-19 virus was currently under control here, however, all health measures taken to control the transmission of the virus from person to person should be continued.

The Secretary made these remarks while participating in a briefing at the premises of the Ministry of Environment on the procedures to be followed for the prevention of coronavirus spread.

The government had instructed every institution to seek the services of a health officer to inform their officers of the required measures for Covid-19 suppression, however the Ministry of Environment did not specifically seek the services of such an officer, he said

Dr. Jasinghe, who took over the task of raising awareness in his Ministry said that the epidemic was currently under control in Sri Lanka but in some countries the Covid -19 and its new variant Omicron was spreading like wildfire. In New York City, for example, patients were still being reported. In the UK, about 100,000 patients were reported daily.

“We have faced a lot of difficulties in the past because of Covid -19. You know how the Sri Lankan government, people and institutions have faced great difficulties. At the same time, we were able to act in a way that did not harm foreign exchange earning institutions such as our Board of Investment as well as exporting institutions,” he added.

He believes that there should be some criteria for the health sector to take the country’s economy and social affairs forward while controlling the Covid-19 spread. “Everyone should act accordingly. The various social inequalities in the country should be prevented from aiding the spread of the pandemic. If social inequalities are included in the virus, the impact of the virus can be doubled.”

“It is now being shown that the Omicron virus, which is spreading worldwide these days, is less effective than other Covid strains. At present there is some control over the Covid-19 epidemic here”, Dr. Jasinghe said adding that even if a certain number of patients were reported, the clear reduction in mortality was a good thing. The reason was that the effect of the virus was gradually diminishing.

He noted that such epidemics were reported about a hundred years ago. The Covid-19 viruses should have stopped, but this time it took a long time for the virus to subside. As the virus intensified, different variants were set off, like firecrackers. Although the Covid-19 virus has some controls, it can be counterattacked. Therefore, all health measures to control the transmission of the virus from person to person should be continued.

Therefore, personal distance should be maintained. Also, wearing face masks, using hygienic fluids, and cleaning hands can be used as a tactic to control the spread of the Covid-19 virus.

Therefore, until the Covid-19 was eradicated from our country as well as the entire world, we would have to use the same tactics that were used to prevent it, Dr. Jasinghe said.