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According to a health official, China expects COVID-19 infections to peak within a week. Despite downplaying the disease’s severity and continuing to report no new deaths, officials forecast increased strain on the nation’s healthcare system.
This month, China started dismantling its “zero-COVID” regime of lockdowns and constant testing in response to a raging outbreak and widespread protests against it, becoming the final big nation to step toward accepting the virus.
Its containment measures had slowed the economy to its worst rate of expansion in close to 50 years, clogging international supply lines and trade. More disruption is anticipated in the short term as more Chinese workers get sick until the economy recovers later in the year.
Less than 4,000 new local COVID cases with symptoms were recorded across the country in China on December 22, and for the third day in a row, there were no new COVID deaths. Numerous medical professionals have criticised the government for narrowing the COVID death criteria.
The National Center for Infectious Diseases’ director, Zhang Wenhong, was cited as saying on Thursday that China “is likely to hit the peak of infections within a week” in the government-backed newspaper The Paper in Shanghai.
The wave will continue for another one or two months after that, he added, adding that the peak infection will also raise the incidence of severe disease, which will have an effect on all of our medical resources.
We need to prepare our minds for the possibility of infection.
However, Zhang claimed he had been to nursing facilities in the Shanghai area and had noticed a low percentage of old people who were experiencing serious symptoms.
According to government data, there are probably more than a million infections and 5,000 fatalities every day in China, which is a “stark difference,” according to British health data company Airfinity.
According to a Shanghai hospital, 25 million residents of the economic hub will be afflicted by the end of the next week. Experts predict that China could experience more than a million COVID fatalities in 2013.
UNPREPARED
China’s unexpected policy shift caught a vulnerable health system off guard, causing hospitals to scramble for beds and blood, pharmacists to scramble for medications, and authorities to race to create clinics.
The failure to immunise the elderly and fail to inform the public of an exit strategy, as well as an overemphasis on virus eradication, were cited as causes of the strain on China’s medical infrastructure by more than a dozen global health experts, epidemiologists, residents, and political analysts interviewed by Reuters.
Three weeks into a vaccination campaign for the elderly, nothing has materialised. According to government statistics, China’s overall vaccination rate is above 90%, but for adults who have had booster injections, the rate reduces to 57.9%, and for those 80 years of age and beyond, it dips to 42.3%.
These people claimed that over the past three years, the nation spent a lot of money on testing and quarantine facilities rather than improving hospitals and clinics and educating medical professionals.
An infectious diseases specialist at Rophi Clinic in Singapore, Leong Hoe Nam, said, “I am quite concerned for China because of the lack of immunisation among the very susceptible population, overstretched healthcare system, and systemic disparities in a country with diverse healthcare standards.
Despite the fact that they had enough warning, there was an astounding lack of preparation for the virus’ arrival.
When contacted for response regarding the criticisms, China’s National Health Commission did not provide any.
NO DATA
Since Beijing abandoned its zero-COVID policy, China has not provided any information to the World Health Organization regarding new COVID hospitalisations. Gaps in the statistics may be caused by Chinese authorities’ inability to accurately count cases, according to the WHO.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated on Thursday that all nations, including China, ought to share information on their experiences with COVID due to growing concerns over Beijing’s figures.
Residents of the Chinese cities where COVID has spread are now learning to live with the virus after living in constant fear of being forced into isolation.
Yang Zengdong, a Chinese teacher who is isolated with her entire family in a downtown Shanghai apartment due to a minor case of COVID, applauds the regulation change. They would all have been quarantined just a few short weeks ago, and their building would have been secured.
We are very fortunate that we can now isolate at home, Yang added. “When I think about this situation, my feeling is just, wow.”
Since it is difficult to remain closed indefinitely, she remarked, “this wave is something we must face.” “We see hope in front of us now,” a lot of us say. “It may have some effect on the economy and cause some troubles in people’s lives.
