Health sector striving to stamp out Covid-19 in Mekong Delta as infections soar

The development of the Covid-19 epidemic in the Mekong Delta region is complicated as the rate of locally-transmitted infection cases soars continuously. Health sectors in the Mekong Delta provinces have not thoroughly controlled Covid-19 outbreaks at seafood processing plants, blockade areas, isolation areas.
Health sector striving to stamp out Covid-19 in Mekong Delta as infections soar ảnh 1 A medic takes the sample from a child for the novel coronavirus testing in Bac Lieu
Bac Lieu Province's Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control yesterday said that in the past 24 hours, the province has recorded 250 new Covid-19 cases, bringing the total number of cases in the province to 4,480 so far. Worse, in the last two weeks alone, the province recorded over 3,480 cases. Bac Lieu is a "hot spot" for Covid-19 in the Mekong Delta.
Chairman of Bac Lieu Provincial People's Committee Pham Van Thieu decided to announce the province’s level of Covid-19 epidemic at level 4 (very high-risk zone). The province put additional 2,980 beds to treat Covid-19 patients. Gia Rai Town is presently the “hot spot" of the pandemic; therefore, around 2,500 additional beds were added.
Vice Chairman of Bac Lieu Provincial People's Committee Phan Thanh Duy asked the Department of Health to be responsible for distributing oxygen, gloves and masks received to medical facilities, facilities for the fight against Covid-19.
Secretary of the Ca Mau Provincial Party Committee Nguyen Tien Hai acknowledged that the situation of the Covid-19 epidemic in recent days has developed rapidly and complicatedly, the number of community cases is increasing. Infections are spreading in factories, seafood processing enterprises; through large gathering parties.
The Secretary of the Ca Mau Provincial Party Committee directed rapid testing and screening for localities, factories, enterprises, production, and business establishments, where the outbreak occurs; At same time, he proposed the Ministry of Health to help send more medical workers to the province.
An Giang Province also sees increasing cases of Covid-19 with a day of nearly 400 cases taking the province’s total infection cases to more than 12, 203.
Director of the provincial Department of Health Tran Quang Hien said that the rapid increase in new Covid-19 cases has happened amongst the high numbers of people (about 67,000 people) returning to An Giang Province from Covid-19-hit places as the rate of infected people detected through screening among these returnees is 1.17 percent. Along with that, the number of cross-infection cases in isolation and blockade areas accounts for a high rate.
The Center for Disease Control in Kien Giang Province also blamed for migration of workers from places previously hardest hit by Vietnam’s latest outbreak plus high cross-infection cases in concentration isolation facilities. The province has so far recorded 11,214 cases of Covid-19.
Director of Tra Vinh Provincial Department of Health Kien Soc Kha said that in the face of the increasing number of Covid-19 cases, the province decided to open some more treatment areas for Covid-19 patients in general hospitals. Severely patients will be transferred to the field hospital No. 1 in the Tuberculosis and Lung Disease Hospital of Tra Vinh Province.
Health sector striving to stamp out Covid-19 in Mekong Delta as infections soar ảnh 2 The Mekong Delta provinces are planning vaccination for students aged 12-17
According to Director of Vinh Long Provincial Department of Health Van Cong Minh, the provincial health sector is reactivating the field hospital No. 5 in Vinh Long city with a scale of 1,000 beds following the rise in Covid-19 patients. Until now, the isolation and treatment of Covid-19 patients have been basically guaranteed, thanks to the support of the Intensive Care Center for Covid-19 patients under the National Children's Hospital.
According to the Department of Health of Soc Trang province, with the establishment of three field hospitals, plus the support of a team of doctors from Cho Ray Hospital and Hospital for Tropical Diseases, the treatment of Covid-19 patients is guaranteed.
Dr. Chung Tan Dinh, Director of the Hospital for Covid-19 Treatment in Soc Trang Province, said the hospital averagely receives about 20 cases per day. Currently, the hospital has 25 severe cases.
The health sector in Kien Giang Province is trying to reduce overloaded isolation areas and blockade facilities. It will give priority to the treatment of severe Covid-19 patients. The province also allows asymptomatic patients with Covid-19 and F1 contact to be isolated and monitored at home.
Because of the complicated development of the Covid-19 epidemic, the Mekong Delta provinces are speeding up the vaccination.  Health workers even administered vaccination at nights.
Currently, the rate of people from 18 years of age or older in An Giang Province getting the first dose of the vaccine reaches 92.88 percent but that of the second dose of vaccine is only 13.81 percent while the rate in Kien Giang Province is 84.08 percent and 32.1 percent respectively.
Three localities in Kien Giang that have completed vaccination for adults from 18 years of age up include Phu Quoc city, Ha Tien city and Giang Thanh District. The Mekong Delta provinces are planning vaccination for students aged 12-17.

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