This increase in COVID19-positive cases also has an impact on the death trend, which is currently rising. The good news is that the increase (in the number of deaths) in the third wave is much lower than that during the second waveJakarta (ANTARA) - An upward trend in COVID-19 deaths was recorded despite the figure still being lower than that during the second COVID-19 wave, Government spokesperson for COVID-19 Handling Wiku Adisasmito stated.
At a virtual press conference accessed here on Tuesday, Adisasmito noted that the number of COVID-19 cases nationwide during the current third wave had jumped sharply faster than that during the second wave.
"This increase in COVID19-positive cases also has an impact on the death trend, which is currently rising. The good news is that the increase (in the number of deaths) in the third wave is much lower than that during the second wave," he affirmed.
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He explained that the country had recorded 505 COVID-19-related deaths last week. Meanwhile, during the spike in cases caused by the Delta variant last year, the number of fatalities had surpassed 12 thousand.
Adisasmito noted that the weekly new cases last week had almost touched the weekly new cases during the Delta spread.
He remarked that 291 thousand new COVID-19 cases were recorded last week due to Omicron. Meanwhile, during the peak of the Delta variant spread during the previous year, the number of weekly cases had reached 350 thousand.
Apart from the rise in the COVID-19 death trend, the bed occupancy rate (BOR) at hospitals also increased, although the rate is still lower than that during the previous wave.
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Currently, the BOR is recorded at 32.85 percent, while the highest record of BOR during the Delta variant spread was 77.32-percent occupancy.
Although the number of deaths is lower as compared to the previous wave, the spokesperson highlighted the importance of suppressing COVID-19 cases from increasing, especially to protect people vulnerable to the virus.
"Taking preventive steps to not get infected is the best way to save lives, especially for older adults, people with comorbidities, and unvaccinated people," he remarked.
The first case of COVID-19 was confirmed in Indonesia in March 2020. According to data from the COVID-19 Handling Task Force, as of February 15, 2022, Indonesia has recorded a total of 4,901,328 COVID-19 cases, 4,349,848 recoveries, and 145,455 deaths.
The Ministry of Health detected the first Omicron case in Indonesia on December 15, 2021. With the spread of the new variant, Indonesia has recorded a significant increase in COVID-19 cases.
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Translator: Prisca Triferna, Raka Adji
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2022
