There has been a steady rise in COVID-19 cases over the past few weeks. Yesterday alone, the country reported 940 new cases and eight deaths. Qatar had done exceedingly well during the first wave of the COVID-19 infection, but the emergence of COVID-19 variants, especially the UK variant, has caused the alarming surge recently.
To control the spread of the infection, the government has announced a couple of new measures, including limiting attendance at public and private workplaces to 50 percent; and shutting hair dressers, indoor dining at restaurants, and public transport on weekends.
The Ministry of Public Health has said that the new variant is much more contagious and spreads more easily than the existing strain. Due to this the number of COVID-19 patients requiring hospitalisation has also risen significantly.
More than 2,100 patients remain in hospital, 431 of them in the intensive care units. The country has rolled out a massive COVID-19 vaccination campaign, with around 26,000 people being vaccinated daily.
Over a million doses of Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines have already been administered in the country. Vaccination notwithstanding, the public must follow all the preventive measures at homes, workplaces, and markets.
These preventive measures, health officials have said, are the best bet against the infection, until all eligible adults are vaccinated. Due to increased hospitalisation, the Ministry has expanded the capacity at hospitals and in intensive care units.
Seven facilities have been dedicated to care for COVID-19 patients. Al Wakra Hospital, one of the largest hospitals in the country, has been converted into an exclusive COVID-19 facility. Minister of Public Health H E Dr. Hanan Mohammed Al Kuwari also visited Al Wakra Hospital on Tuesday where she reviewed the arrangements in place to deal with the caseload.
The Minister also met senior members of Hamad Medical Corporation’s Tactical Command Group and Al Wakra Hospitals leadership team. “We have taken a proactive approach to our capacity expansion strategy throughout the pandemic, ensuring that we always have sufficient bed capacity to meet any future increases in demand for hospital admission. By adding Al Wakra Hospital to our COVID-19 hospital network we now have an extra 400 hospital beds and 150 intensive care beds available for COVID-19 patients, should the demand require them,” the Minister said.
Designating seven facilities for COVID-19 patients has also enabled the health authorities to continue providing regular healthcare services at other facilities. Additionally, patients attending non-COVID-19 facilities for regular medical services can do so safely, without the risk of infection.
