CONTINGENCY plans are in place to tackle the newest variant of the coronavirus (Covid-19), the country’s health chiefs said.
Allaying fears over the spread of Omicron, which the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Monday said ‘carried a very high risk of infection surges’, Bahrain’s Covid-19 taskforce members said the team was monitoring the situation closely and was prepared.
Measures include polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing of people at the borders and special lab checks for those testing positive.
“In light of the discovery of the new variant Omicron in a number of countries around the world, we confirm that Bahrain is constantly following up on global developments,” said Health Ministry Under-Secretary Dr Waleed Al Manea.
“We will not hesitate to take the necessary measures at the local level to protect our citizens and residents.
“Bahrain has been taking pro-active measures since the beginning of the pandemic – so regardless of the variant, we are prepared.”
Dr Al Manea was addressing a Press conference remotely from the Crown Prince Centre for Training and Medical Research, Riffa.
Strategy
He explained the effective strategy of detecting, treating and contact tracing which has helped curb the spread of the virus in the country so far.
“We are conducting a high percentage of tests, including at the borders and inside the country. People entering Bahrain still undergo tests on the fifth and 10th day of arrival.
“Samples of those who test positive are further checked for virus sequences. Bahrain is following up on all variants.”
He underlined the kingdom’s successful treatment protocol, highlighting the monoclonal antibodies, which have “radically changed the system and method”.
The GDN reported in October that the country has been at the forefront in acquiring all approved medicines for the virus in line with global protocols. Merck pill Molnupiravir and Regn-Cov2, an artificial drug for prophylaxis, were adopted in August, after Sotrovimab, Actemra or Tocilizimab were approved in July. Hydroxychloroquine, one of the earliest drugs to treat Covid-19, was approved in April last year.
Dr Al Manea said Bahrain had its own methodology to decide on the travel red list, based on assessment of risks.
“Every country has the right to preserve the security and protect their citizens and residents – so we have a methodology and we did not change it – we call it the red list, and we just activated it based on available information,” he said.
“We have limited information on Omicron and based on studies, the list will be updated.”
Bahrain had reinstated its travel red list following the emergence of Omicron, the first case of which was detected in the GCC yesterday in neighbouring Saudi Arabia. The countries on the list are South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Botswana, Eswatini, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique, Angola and Zambia.
Senior task force member Dr Jameela Salman also dismissed fears over Omicron.
She said initial data did not reveal that the new variant could lead to a more severe infection compared with the previous ones. Nor is there any confirmation of its high transmissibility.
She affirmed that all studies indicated the effectiveness of vaccines against the virus and its variants, though the degree of efficiency might vary depending on several factors.
The Salmaniya Medical Complex Infectious and Internal Diseases consultant called on people to continue wearing face masks and maintaining social distancing.
“These precautionary measures will help reduce the spread, complications and death rates – along with vaccination and booster shots,” she said, urging public to take information from reliable sources.
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