High transmission rate due to Delta variant: Dr War

SHILLONG, June 24: Attributing the high transmission rate of Covid-19 in the state to the Delta variant of the virus, medical experts have advised people to get vaccinated.
On an average, Meghalaya is recording over 400 cases every day when the Covid curve has flattened in most states.
Director of Health Services (MI) Aman War said vaccination is the best and the safest resort against the virus.
Dr War dismissed any surge in the cases. He said the high number of infections was because people were mingling with one another which helped the virus to spread. He said the transmission of the Delta variant is fast.
He cautioned that there would be severe problems if the cases reach unmanageable proportions. In order to prevent the virus from getting irreversible, the most important aspect is vaccination of people so that immunity is achieved, he reiterated.
Insisting that everyone must wear a mask, sanitise hands and maintain physical distancing, Dr War said the government has come across several cases where people,  who have taken the first vaccine dose, contracted the virus but had only mild or no symptoms before recovering.
“Even if they have comorbidities, they are able to come out of it,” he said, adding that there is a huge difference between vaccinated and not vaccinated and this is the reason why the mortality rate is high in the state.
He said the government is ramping up infrastructure and manpower wherever needed but added that the western countries, despite having the best infrastructure, recorded high death rates.
On the issue of lack of pediatricians and pediatric intensive care units in the state, Dr War said the department is training all doctors to ensure that they are able to manage the pediatric cases.
He also said that there is a need to strengthen the referral system since the cases were also being reported from rural areas.
Lauding the East Khasi Hills district administration for identifying community ambulances, he said it would be of great help for the government if the administration is able to transfer cases from rural areas at the earliest.
There are rumours that Covid vaccination leads to infertility but Dr War pointed out that many nurses conceived even after getting both jabs.