THERE is no question that Covid-19 is here to stay. With the numerous variants that came out of the mutations of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19—from Alpha to today’s highly transmissible Omicron—a question remains: When will it stop?
Vaccination, according to experts, is the universally accepted solution to curb the spread and further mutations. But many also believe that Covid-19 will not go away, just like any common cold, cough or flu. It will be here to stay and planet Earth would just have to deal with it.
Recently, the Ateneo School of Government, through the Ateneo Policy Center, together with the Eastern Regional Organization for Public Administration, or EROPA, gathered four international experts in an online roundtable discussion titled “Recalibrating Inclusive Health and Economic Recovery in Southeast Asia: From Zero Covid-19 to Living with Covid-19.”
They picked the minds of experts from Indonesia, Taiwan, Singapore and from the Philippines, who all sat down and weighed in on what needed to be done so that countries that continue to struggle and fight the dreaded disease can move on from the pandemic. Their in-depth discussion centered on a dream that humanity, if it can’t stop Covid-19, can somehow just live with it.
The distrust factor
DR. Manuel Dayrit, former secretary of the Department of Health (DOH) and Professor from the Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health, pointed to some problems that caused distrust among the public during the start of the pandemic. Specifically, Dayrit said allegations of corruption and issues like the Dengvaxia controversy were stumbling blocks that sowed distrust in the minds of many Filipinos.
For is part, Dr. Eko Prasojo, a Professor at the Faculty of Administrative Services of Universitas Indonesia, said that in the case of his country, a significant portion of their population would much rather listen to informal leaders such as religious or village chiefs when it comes to issues regarding the pandemic. As such, he said there’s immense value in tapping these leaders to educate the public.
Asked about the situation regarding his country Singapore, Dr. Kai Hong Phua, Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Policy Studies of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore, underscored the value of having expertise.
“Having a group of experts that have come to a consensus regarding the data that they are dealing with would help national leaders have a better grasp of the information that they would then share to the public. This would minimize confusion and foster greater trust in government communication moving forward,” Dr. Phua explained.
When asked to comment, Dr. Chien-jen Chen, former Vice President of Taiwan and academician from Academia Sinica, underscored that “it is very important to provide accurate information immediately through mass media, especially through electronic channels.”
He also stressed that eradicating vaccine nationalism is integral in protecting more people around the world against the virus. “Doing so will allow us to live with the virus without fear of it causing massive disruption in our economies and societies.”
“No one is safe unless everyone is safe, and no country is safe unless every country is safe,” Dr. Chen added. “We have to help each other. This is the only way. We need global solidarity for global health.”
Invest in primary health care
COMMENTING on the sudden spike of cases triggered by the Omicron variant, Dr. Phua said that a common-sense approach to managing cases would be to invest in a primary health-care system that can deal with patients in a more efficient manner.
“If you take the approach of a cost-effective and sustainable system, I think the emphasis should be on the primary healthcare system that’s able to monitor and detect symptoms early enough then refer them for better management at the more acute stages,” Dr. Phua added.
Another important thing, as far as Dr. Dayrit is concerned: the Philippines must invest in building its capacity to produce vaccines as this is key in addressing the needs of Filipinos. “We need to have some form of vaccine production capacity. Even if we can’t do the research, we need to have the capacity to be able to copy and produce. If we can do that, we will have some security when it comes to vaccine supplies.”
On the question of striking a balance between economic recovery and mitigating this health crisis, Dr. Prasojo said that it’s important to continue the vaccine programs to ensure that the spread of the disease is managed well, but with that, governments should really zero in on propping up micro, small and medium enterprises as they are crucial in strengthening the economy.
The more prepared the people are to prevent transmission and prevent deaths, the better the balance will be so that there’s no need for a lockdown, according to Dayrit. “In our case, it became the default response. And if you lock down, you stop the economy.”
He proposed that the only way to achieve that balance, preventive-wise, is through vaccination and anti-virals, and put in the technology to make it more efficient. “If we’re able to do that, you prevent transmission through vaccination and anti-virals, you prevent deaths because your doctors are better prepared and your hospitals are buttressed, your economy can open. The balance is enabled by your pandemic preparedness,” Dr. Dayrit concluded.
Image credits: Nonie Reyes, www.roc-taiwan.org