In an apparent surrender to the spread of COVID19 health authorities have said ‘the only way’ to prevent the dissemination of the virus are social distancing, wearing of face masks and personal and collective hygiene by citizens.
This alternative of combating the virus was repeated on Monday as it was announced that 117 persons were confirmed infected during the last 24 hours, the highest tally ever registered in this Balkan country since its opening up from the lockdown five weeks ago. The number of tests was higher than other days mounting to 585, said the Health Ministry in the daily bulletin which announced also that two other people passed away bringing to 95 the total number of fatalities.
“Currently we are being faced with a communitarian transmission of the virus in some municipalities of the country. The Health Ministry asks citizens not to reduce vigilance to limit the spread of the COVID19,” said the statement.
In the meantime Dr. Eugena Tomini, specialist at the Institute of Public Health (ISHP), said the past week showed a growing trend of the positive confirmed cases, increase of the hospitalizations, more patients needing intensive care and being intubated. “Unfortunately, we have also had a growth of the citizens we have lost their life.”
Dr. Tomini was also concerned about the situation at the infection diseases hospitals which she described as grave at a time when 84 patients need medical treatment and 10 are in intensive therapy and 4 intubated.
According to her, Tirana is the most problematic city with 42 cases registered in the last 24 hours while the map of the presence of the virus has already extended across Albania, including remote areas.
The number of those who have recovered was 68 bringing to 2,014 the total number of people who have been saved from the disease.
While the health authorities repeat the advice to the citizens for self-care, which as a matter of fact, is being neglected by the people en masse, strangely enough they do not say anything about what the state institutions are doing to check the uncontrolled spread of the pandemic. If during the March-May period PM Edi Rama engaged the army and tanks patrolled the streets of Tirana, now the government seems incapable to enforce the wearing of face masks by citizens. ‘To wear or not to wear the mask’ has turned into a Shakespearean like dilemma in a country with people who used to make fun of the Asian tradition of wearing masks, a protective measure which has been efficient for the Continent. /argumentum.al
