Referring to initial experience from the epicenter of the infection process in the greater area around the capital Pretoria, the South African epidemiologist and ex-government advisor Salim Abdool Karim said on Wednesday: “We now have indications from hospitals that only one in four patients is a serious case. “
Much faster spread
“In the past three waves of infection, two out of three admitted patients were severe cases,” said the expert. Although these indications are not yet scientifically sound, the data so far indicated a trend. “We can pretty safely say that Omikron is spreading very quickly – at least 25 percent faster than the Delta variant,” he said at a conference that was about the realignment of African health systems. It is now important to prepare for new challenges: “Variants have changed the game – we will see more variants,” he said beforehand.
John Nkengasong of the African Union Health Organization (Africa CDC) confirmed this assessment and warned: “The continent should hurry to build a new health system.” New approaches are needed. The Ebola outbreak in West Africa a few years ago was already a warning. “As a continent, we have to find our own solutions,” said Ebere Okereke, a physician from the Tony Blair Institute.
The CDC – which organized the conference – is trying to pool the resources of the African states and to coordinate measures in the fight against the pandemic.
Source: Nachrichten
