PAHO Director on COVID-19: «The next six months will not be easier»
PAHO is helping to provide “orientation, training and personal protective equipment” to countries so as “to create better working conditions for front-line workers”
After almost six and a half months of 2020, the pandemic due to the new coronavirus causing the disease COVID-19 has taken its toll not only in the field of health but also in the economic and social sphere, with a current behavior that instead of decreasing the risks to human beings, they are increasing every day.
It is no longer only the United States, the epicenter of the global outbreak, it is the entire American continent that is the main focus of contagion and death from coronavirus, with figures that leave other regions behind and — as if that were not enough — it continues to increase in an uncontrolled, abrupt and totally worrying manner,
America has at least eight countries with more than 100,000 cases. Argentina and Canada were the last to reach that figure. Then Mexico, Chile and Peru appear with more than 300,000 infected; Brazil with almost two million; and then the United States with more than three million 300 thousand confirmed, according to the Johns Hopkins University interactive map.
The behavior of the disease on the continent has been on the rise despite the preventive measures of social isolation and confinement that governments began to take four months ago; with daily continental infections averaging 100,000 and with a death toll approaching 300,000 people.
In this regard, the director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Carissa F. Etienne, again sent a message of warning to the region, confirming that the pandemic has not yet finished its first wave of infections, that is, that once that peak of infections is over, all the people in the American continent will have to endure a possible second outbreak and be prepared for it.
On this point, Etienne emphasized that on the continent, governments have failed to coordinate efforts to stem the wave of contagion by trying to work together, a situation that she regrets because it persists, despite the continental alarm, “a strong coordination between countries” to “guide the actions of their leaders” and “that people protect themselves and others “.
“We must remain vigilant, but especially in places that have seen a recent increase in cases, as we are seeing in several states in the United States, in most Central American countries and in most South American countries”, Etienne said.
A pandemic of staggering proportions
The head of PAHO stressed that COVID-19 has generated “a pandemic of astonishing proportions”, which is why governments and health authorities have no other option “than to continue putting all their energy into controlling it”.
In this sense, she argues that addressing the COVID-19 pandemic “requires strong coordination among countries, a deep understanding of epidemiological trends, clear guidance, and a reliable supply of public health supplies. All of these are the things that PAHO is actively doing to strengthen the response of our Member States”, she stressed.
Etienne highlighted that cases in the continent of America exceeded the barrier of the six million people infected in a fast way, and at the rate it is going, it could easily double, especially because after four months of quarantine, governments and people are starting to break the confinements by trying to save their economies.
“Last week, there were 735,000 new cases in the region, with an average of more than 100,000 cases reported every day”, stressed the head of PAHO, adding that COVID-19 cases in the continent of America continue to accelerate, with 20 % more cases than the previous week, and also, new patterns are emerging.
Two months ago, only the United States accounted for 75% of COVID-19 cases in the region. Last week, the United States reported just under half of the continental cases, while Latin America and the Caribbean reported more than 50% of cases, and only Brazil reported around a quarter of them”, detailed Etienne.
An example of the exponential jump in infections is Venezuela, one of the countries that presented the best figures since March and that a little over a month ago reached just over 1,000 cases. But the massive return of venezuelan migrants returning from countries like Ecuador, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Brazil; and their return through illegal and uncontrolled border crossings, has increased the number of positive patients and now, Venezuela counts almost 10,000 infected.
Six months of COVID-19: lessons and challenges
The past six months have brought some “positive surprises” that have confirmed the resilience of our health systems, and some “unexpected challenges that we must address in the following months”, said the director of PAHO.
Etienne recognized the effort of the countries of the region that adopted preventive measures from the beginning, established emergency services very quickly and improved their systems to detect the virus “This unprecedented effort was critical to keeping cases low at the start of the pandemic, which saved us significant time in preparing our health systems”.
She highlighted that emergency facilities were quickly established in the region. Temporary hospitals and designated isolation and quarantine sites were built in record time.
“At least 27 countries have activated emergency teams and established measures to strengthen their national health systems. These efforts provided much-needed augmentation capacity for our health systems as COVID-19 cases began to increase. Thanks to these actions, we have saved thousands of lives”, said Etienne.
The rector of the Pan American body indicated that many countries changed their systems to improve detection of the virus. Additionally, COVID-19 challenged countries to decentralize their laboratory capacity so that they could quickly identify, report, and treat cases at the local level.
“To do this, virtual and in-person training was required to set up the labs, and supplies were also required, which PAHO helped secure and distribute, including nearly 15 million PCR tests for COVID-19”, she added.
In this regard, Etienne stressed that there are several persistent challenges that the region has to face in order to control the pandemic. “An absolute priority is to protect nurses, doctors, and other vulnerable health workers with appropriate personal protective equipment”.
Health workers are vulnerable
“Throughout the region we have received reports of health workers who become ill in the line of duty, due to a lack of personal protective equipment or due to unsafe working conditions”, said Etienne.
In this regard, she said that PAHO is helping to provide “orientation, training and personal protective equipment” to countries so as “to create better working conditions for front-line workers”.
She also expressed concern about the stigmatization of society towards COVID-19, a situation that “slows down the response” to face the pandemic.
“We need people to feel safe and comfortable in making themselves heard and seeking help when they have symptoms, so that we are better able to trace contacts and isolate suspected cases from the start. This is our best hope to control the pandemic”, said Dr. Etienne.
“We still have a lot to learn about this virus, we have a number of public health measures that work to control transmission, and we must trust them”.
“However, every day we learn more about how this virus spreads in our communities, and this science must continue to guide our response. Our teams at PAHO and WHO closely follow the new evidence and translate it into guidance documents. So far, we have issued over 100″.
Coordination is essential to stop COVID-19
“Not everything about the pandemic has been surprising”, explains Etienne, who notes that “as expected, some of the most persistent problems in our region” are those that “have contributed to the COVID-19’s scale: inequity, political divide and health systems that have been weakened by years of low investment”.
“These are issues that we must address during the pandemic; and continue boarding once it’s done. As we look to the future, we are all affected and we all have a role to play. From our team at PAHO, to the leadership of our member states and each of us as individuals”, she said.
The head of PAHO maintains that a pandemic requires strong coordination among countries, “a deep understanding of epidemiological trends, clear guidance, and a reliable supply of health products”.
The region’s leaders — she added — “must allow the evidence to guide their actions, focusing on what works and uniting the people around them. They have a responsibility to act transparently and proactively as they mobilize the institutions of each nation to respond”.
The doctor took advantage of making an appeal to governments and citizens, because they have a personal responsibility to protect themselves and others through measures in which everyone agrees, such as physical distancing and the use of masks due to the threat of the asymptomatic. This “means that we can all help each other overcome this crisis”.
Etienne emphasized that, for the past six months, the pandemic “has shaken and stirred our world”; for this reason, “the next six months will not be easier and we cannot let our guard down. To endure, we must rely on our growing knowledge of this virus, our ability to apply these learnings in solidarity, and our unwavering determination”.
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