Consultant Medical Microbiologist and Chairman of Infection Control Committee, Al Wakra Hospital, Dr. Naser Alansari
Doha: With several countries around the world report an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, people in Qatar have been urged to follow precautionary measures to avoid a similar scenario in the country.
“Although Qatar has not showed signs of a second wave of COVID-19, number of cases might increase or have small outbreaks if people do not follow precautionary measures,” said Consultant Medical Microbiologist and Chairman of Infection Control Committee, Al Wakra Hospital, Dr. Naser Alansari.
He said that many countries in the Europe and North America have started to have surge in the number of COVID-19 cases. “We want to prevent that happening in Qatar,” Dr. Alansari told The Peninsula.
“We should be wise and take the lesson from those countries and should prevent going back to the scenario,” Dr. Alansari said that some people, especially the youth avoid masks, and they do not maintain social distancing in public places. “This can be because they are overwhelmed with COVID-19 restrictions, or they are tired of the repeated guidelines but it is important that they follow precautionary measures,” he said.
“Unless we follow all precautionary measures, we may see numbers increasing – there are already signs of this happening in other countries around the world,” said Dr. Alansari. He also said that some people get mislead about misinformation and myth spread over the Internet. For example, some advocate against wearing masks.
“People shouldn’t get mislead over such information and risk themselves. It’s very important that people follow information from reliable sources such as the WHO, CDC and Ministry of Public Health,” said Dr. Alansari.
According to him, wearing mask is one of the proven ways of limiting the spread of COVID-19.
If an infected person wears the mask, he will prevent spreading the virus through droplets by four folds. And a non infected person will be protected by 6 folds, if he wears a mask.
Dr. Alansari also explained that cloth reusable masks are suitable for healthy and young people, but it is advisable for elderly and people with chronic diseases to wear surgical masks as those can provide extra layers of protection. However, he said, N95 masks are needed only for healthcare professionals and they are at a higher risk of getting exposed to the virus, and it is more uncomfortable to wear for prolonged time.
“It is important for everyone to play their role in controlling the virus by following precautionary measures including adherence to physical distancing, avoid close contact with others, avoid crowded places and confined closed spaces where other people congregate, wearing a face mask and washing hands regularly,” said Dr. Alansari.
Dr. Alansari also urged the public to take the influenza vaccine as it is more important than ever to protect from the seasonal flu. Dr Alansari, who regularly gets himself vaccinated against the seasonal flu, said that vaccine is the most safe and effective way to prevent a flu.
“Vaccine can avoid the risk of flu, will protect the community and help the health system in times of COVID-19,” he said. He said that getting a flu vaccine can reduce the possibility of becoming co-infected with flu and COVID-19, which could end up with a severe illness.
“It is more important for the vulnerable people of the society as elderly, children below 5 years of age, pregnant women, healthcare workers, people with chronic illnesses such as hypertension, diabetes, lung diseases and immunity compromising illnesses,” said Dr. Alansari.
He highlighted that with visitors and residents being allowed to enter the country, it is important for them to follow quarantine regulations. He said that testing and proper quarantine helps to prevent anyone with the virus spreading it into the community.
“We have a very effective system for testing and quarantine travelers. On average we record around 25 to 30 COVID-19 positive cases among travelers,” said Dr. Alansari.
