There are 173 items of medicines and 45 items of medical supplies -- the total weight of the medical necessities is 18 tons.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - At least 35.81 percent of the total 100,051 Indonesian Hajj pilgrims have high health risk since they are elderly and/or have comorbidities, the Health Ministry has said.

"Out of the 35 percent, there are 25,481 people who are at high risk with comorbidities," Head of the Hajj Health Center at the ministry Budi Sylvana said at an online press conference, accessed from here on Thursday.

There will be a limited number of health workers who will serve the 2022 Hajj pilgrims, he added.

"In 2022, we will only deploy 776 health workers," he informed.

The Hajj Health Center will also prepare three thousand smart watches for the pilgrims who have very high health risk, especially those suffering from heart disease and hypertension, to monitor their condition.

"Their health will be monitored by officers through (an electronic) system; hopefully the implementation of the system will be effective," he said.

The indicators monitored by the system will include blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen saturation, and water drink-time reminder, the official informed.

In addition, the Health Ministry will use the ‘TeleJamaah’ health service app to monitor the condition of the pilgrims, he added.

The ministry has sent more than 18 tons of medicines and medical supplies for the 2022 Hajj pilgrims, he informed.

"There are 173 items of medicines and 45 items of medical supplies -- the total weight of the medical necessities is 18 tons," he said.

Currently, the medical supplies have arrived at the immigration office in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where they will be inspected by local authorities, Sylvana added.

He said the Hajj Health Center will also disburse 100 thousand packages containing health equipment, including cloth masks, medical masks, oral rehydration solution (ORS) packets, plasters, wet wipes, urine bags, and hand sanitizers for the pilgrims.

"All pilgrims will get the package as their (personal medical) supplies (during their time) in Saudi Arabia," he added.

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Translator: Zubi Mahrofi, Uyu Liman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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