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Maltese Public Health Specialists: ‘We May Well Be In The Beginning Of A Second Wave’

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Malta could well be in the beginning of a second wave and public announcements suggesting the country is on track to a return to normality are “dangerous”, the Malta Association of Public Health Medicine has warned.

The MAPHM, whose President is Sascha Reiff, a lead at Malta’s COIVD-19 testing centres, noted that the average number of new coronavirus cases has risen in recent weeks and attributed this to the government’s decision to re-open non-essential retail outlets earlier this month.

“The initial effects of the first transition phase are that the number of active cases is increasing again,” they said. “The R factor has been constantly back over 1 for the past week. Our number of new cases per capita is higher than that of Italy, Spain, Germany, and France. We may now very well be in the beginning of the second wave.”

The MAPHM warned the number of active cases has risen in recent days

The MAPHM warned the number of active cases has risen in recent days

“Public announcements suggesting that all is well, and that we are on track to return to normality very soon are misleading and dangerous.”

“Now, more than ever we need to stick to public health measures that have protected us so well so far. We must continuously renew our commitment to maintain social distancing, avoid unnecessary contacts and trips outdoors and promote the correct use of masks in the community. This needs to be coupled with education and enforcement.”

“We urge government and policy makers to ensure that public health principles, epidemiological considerations and a sound evidence base set the pace for the responsible reversal of measures, and their timely reintroduction should the R factor increase again. This is the situation we are now currently in.”

The public health association said while it recognises the “devastating” social, economic and mental health consequences of restrictions, “things will only get worse if the outbreak gets out of control”.

“We should learn from the tragedies unfolding in our neighbouring countries and avoid an overwhelming resurgence of cases,” it said.

“This cautious approach to relaxation of restrictive measures is in line with both the EU Roadmap for relaxation of community social distancing measures and WHO-Europe. The Director of WHO-Europe has claimed there is ‘no room for complacency’.”

“We echo this sentiment since, despite our best efforts, our health system’s capacity will be rapidly surmounted if measures are relaxed too fast and if the population ceases to respect social distancing, mask and hygiene etiquette. Exceeding health system and resource capacity could all too easily result in difficulty not only in managing COVID cases but also the continuing non-COVID illnesses that our population face.”

“Ultimately, the economy is dependent on a healthy population. Let us walk this tight rope to a ‘new normal’ with our heart in the right place continuing to put health first, otherwise the price to pay in lives lost may be dear.”

What do you make of this statement?

READ NEXT: Rising Restaurant Costs Are No Longer Sustainable Unless Something Is Done, Maltese Association Warns

Tim is interested in the rapid evolution of human society and is passionate about justice, human rights and cutting-edge political debates. You can follow him on Instagram or Twitter/X at @timdiacono or reach out to him at [email protected]

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