Caribbean remains especially vulnerable to COVID, PAHO warns
Published:Thursday | February 24, 2022 | 12:09 AMChristopher Serju/Senior Gleaner Writer
Despite a 28 per cent fall in the number of COVID-19 cases reported in the region last week and a nine per cent fall in fatalities after six weeks of consecutive increases since the start of the Omicron wave, the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO) says many countries are still facing the crest of infection surges.
During yesterday’s weekly press briefing on COVID-19 in the Americas, PAHO Director Carissa F. Etienne disclosed that 2.2 million new cases were reported for the region last week, along with 29,000 fatalities.
Although new cases dropped by a third across North America, Mexico reported a 70 per cent increase of new infections, and while deaths declined in the United States, these rates were still among the highest seen throughout the pandemic.
And although the number of new cases in the Caribbean fell by 44 per cent, more than half of the 13 countries and territories that reported increases in deaths were in this region.
In The Bahamas, the virus continues to hit vulnerable groups and it is estimated that some 10 per cent of healthcare workers are currently in quarantine due to COVID-related exposures. Grenada reported a 50 per cent increase in intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, while Jamaica’s rose by 23 per cent, and Guadeloupe had a nine per cent increase, compared to the previous week.
Across Central America, deaths declined by 17 per cent; however, Nicaragua saw cases surge by a third. ICU admissions and deaths continue to rise in Honduras, and while deaths decreased overall in South America by 13 per cent, some places continued to report spikes. In Chile, for instance, ICU admissions accelerated by a quarter and deaths increased by 37 per cent.
According to Dr Etienne, these trends show that many places are still in the midst of the Omicron surge, so the region needs to remain vigilant and continue to implement the measures that have proven to save lives.
In addition to the diversity of its populations, the Caribbean, which has a population more than 44 million people has many inequalities, and has been struggling to cope during the pandemic.
One of the most glaring examples of the inequalities, according to Etienne, was that while 91 per cent of the population in the Cayman Islands has been fully vaccinated, less than one per cent of Haitians have received all their doses.
“In fact, out of 13 countries and territories in the Americas that have not yet reached the World Health Organization’s goal of 40 per cent vaccination coverage, 10 are in the Caribbean. Because of this, today the Caribbean region remains especially vulnerable to COVID,” she warned.
“So far, we have been able to reach 63 per cent of the eligible of the population with life-saving COVID-19 vaccines, thanks to the tireless efforts of governments, healthcare workers and communities, but this is a picture with many contrasts,” she pointed out.
No more supply worry
There are varying reasons for the low vaccination coverage, and even though limited vaccines supply is less of a worry now, two conditions that are necessary to scale up campaigns to the farthest corners are still missing, the public health specialist reported. In some countries, vaccination centres are located in central areas, which may be far from the people who need them the most. Also, some countries are short-staffed, with doctors and nurses experiencing severe burnout.
“And then, there are those who remain unvaccinated by choice and to understand why, our teams have been exploring people’s attitudes towards vaccines. In one PAHO study published in the Lancet, we found that the vast majority of health workers are eager to use the vaccines to protect themselves and are doing all they can to reach as many people as possible. But some still want more information.
“They have questions on potential side effects or on how long the benefits of the vaccine last. These are legitimate questions that must be acknowledged, so that we can better protect our health workers and everyone else. Some people have not gotten vaccinated because they no longer see COVID as a risk to themselves, yet the spread and death toll of Omicron have shown that underestimating this virus only fuels the pandemic and leads to more suffering,” said Etienne.