Covid infection rate high among citizens
A HUNDRED infected Bahrainis can transmit the coronavirus to another 180 people, a rate that has increased among citizens compared to expatriates.
The calculation is based on the basic reproduction number (R0) for Covid-19 in Bahrain, which is the average rate in which an infected person infects another.
Health Ministry Under-Secretary Dr Waleed Al Manea yesterday revealed that the average R0 in Bahrain was 1.52 in the last 28 days.
However, he warned that between May 13 and Tuesday the R0 stood at 1.83 among Bahrainis and 1.35 among expats.
This means each individual could transmit the virus to two other people.
“The R0 shows the average number of people who contracted the infection from an active case,” explained Dr Al Manea.
“If the R0 is above one, it means the active case will spread the virus to more than one person and if the R0 is two then it will spread to two and so on.
“In Bahrain, currently, the R0 from May 13 to June 9 is around 1.52 on an average – this means that each individual could transmit to two others.
“So, if we have 100 people they could transmit to 150 and we found out that there was a difference amongst citizens and residents on this aspect.
“The R0 was higher among citizens, which was 1.83 and that means 100 infected Bahrainis can spread it to 180 others.
“Whereas it was 1.35 among expatriates, which means 100 of them could transmit to 130 others.
“So, we see the spread is currently more among citizens.”
Dr Al Manea stressed that the spread among Bahrainis was higher due to people being reckless and attending family gatherings, while the rise among expatriates was due to not properly following social distancing measures.
“Do not be reckless or else the virus will spread,” he said.
“If we follow guidelines, we can mitigate the spread.
“We see an increase in the number of cases due to recklessness.”
He also said that “personal responsibility” was of utmost importance to limit the spread of the disease in the country.
Safety
“Ensuring public safety is a national duty,” said Dr Al Manea. “We must adhere to individual responsibility and to precautionary measures for the health and safety of everyone so that we can successfully overcome this pandemic.”
He was speaking at a Press briefing held online from the Crown Prince Centre for Training and Medical Research alongside National Taskforce for Combating Coronavirus (Covid-19) monitoring committee head Lieutenant Colonel Dr Manaf Al Qahtani and SMC infectious and internal diseases consultant Dr Jameela Al Salman.
Source: http://www.gdnonline.com/Details/825067/Covid-infection-rate-high-among-citizens
