Da Nang Party Committee Secretary Nguyen Van Quang on Wednesday highlighted the need to identify those who have not yet had their first dose across the city in order to encourage them to get life-saving jabs during his meeting with members of the municipal Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

Secretary Nguyen Van Quang (left) delivers his address at Wednesday'’s meeting. Photo: PHAN CHUNG

Healthcare workers were tasked to continue to go ‘door-to-door’ in bid to reach the unvaccinated who find it challenging to visit a vaccination site. Mr Quang suggested that those who refuse to get vaccinated against COVID-19 should be required to sign a commitment statement with authorities at local level to take personal responsibility for their own safety and the safety of others.

The Da Nang top leader urged authorities at local level to identify the unvaccinated people in their locales, as well as report about these people to the municipal government not later than February 15.

Heed must be paid on making sure that all eligible adults aged 18 and over across Da Nang get a COVID-19 booster jab in the first quarter of 2022, Mrs Quang emphasized.

Currently, 93.5% of Da Nang’s COVID-19 patients are experiencing mild symptoms or no symptoms, and they are eligible for monitoring and care at home.

Such patients are required to stay in a separate room away from other people in their homes and ensure it is well-ventilated and ideally has a window they can open. In addition, they must comply with COVID-19 guidelines, especially the 5K recommendations of the Ministry of Health, during their home quarantine period.

The patients must stay at home at all times and not have contact with other people in their family and their pets. This will help reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19 to other members of their family, especially seniors, those with underlying health conditions, and chiddren.

Secretary Quang asked the health agency to deploy skilled health professionals across the city in efforts to effectively manage patients with COVID-19 mild symptoms under home isolation. Special attention must be paid to closely monitoring these patients in a bid to timely transfer patients whose symptoms appear to be getting worse to the hospital.

In addition, high priority must be given to providing effective treatment for hospitalized COVID-19 patients to reduce mortality rates, as well as reducing pressure on health systems by more effective home-based care for patients with mild symptoms.

In its efforts to provide effective treatment for COVID-19 patients, Da Nang is adopting the three-tiered treatment model.

Mr Quang underlined the need for the health agency to exert every effort to protect vulnerable and at-risk populations referring to older adults and those with underlying health conditions when they get COVID-19. They must be transferred to a healthcare facility for treatment in order to prevent their conditions from worsening and save their lives.

Da Nang People's Committee Chairman Le Trung Chinh directed authorities at local level to continue to follow COVID-19 guidelines from the municipal and national governments to curb the spread of the virus.

Mr Chinh urged every one across the city to strictly observe the 5K recommendations of the Ministry of Health to protect themselves and their wider community.

Data published by the municipal Department of Health shows that a total of 672 COVID-19 patients or 6.5% are being treated at health facilities while 9,729 others or 93.5% with mild illness that are being monitored and isolated to recover at home. In detail, 22.17% of the city’s hospitalized patients are classified as serious patients, and 1.79% are connected to ECMO machines.

In particular, 43.48% of severe and critical patients have yet to be jabbed.

Da Nang reported 925 new COVID-19 patients on Wednesday, February 9, of which 697 were found in the community and the 228 remaining ones logged during home-based quarantine.

Cases with a high risk of further community transmission were recorded at all local districts: 159 in Hai Chau, 136 in Cam Le, 97 in Hoa Vang, 92 in Lien Chieu, 78 in Son Tra, 66 in Ngu Hanh Son, and 64 in Thanh Khe.

Reporting by PHAN CHUNG – Translating by H.L