The measures announced recently should not be lax, the situation remains critical and lockdown should be our very last resort, Head of the Scientific Committee on Covid-19 Dr. Constantinos Tsioutis has told the Cyprus News Agency.
He said that a lockdown is considered to be the next step but should be avoided, although he pointed out that the situation is deemed to be worst in January because of the weather conditions and because people stay indoors.
Dr Tsioutis explained that even if a lockdown is decided, the progress in the overall picture will not be quickly evident, adding that it has effects in the psychology of the people and on the economy as well. He urged people to follow the measures that were announced recently and underlined that each one of us must comprehend why these measures were decided in the first place and to protect ourselves and others. He also recalled that these measures need at least 2-3 weeks to yield results and this was the case when similar measures were decided for some districts in Cyprus in November.
Head of the Committee also told CNA that countries in Europe which announced lockdowns, are still in that phase and some were not even able to contain the virus and have announced a much stricter lockdown for the festive days. He said that the transmission of the virus happens very rapidly and this is the main reason why measures were announced for home and other gatherings. He urged people to adhere to these measures and behave with the utmost responsibility.
Dr. Tsioutis also spoke of the severity of the situation of Cyprus’ health system and the pressure it is under, pointing out that the clinical course of the virus is such that one could be hospitalised for a maximum of 3 weeks.
He also said that deaths will continue to occur.
(CNA)
