Epidemiological situation in Georgia
By Khatia Bzhalava
Tuesday, June 16
After the meeting of the Coordination Council, on the briefing at the government’s administration, the Head of National Center for Disease Control (NCDC), Amiran Gamkrelidze, talked about the epidemiological situation in Georgia.
According to Gamkrelidze, if all the recommendations of the healthcare sector are followed, Georgia might not face the second wave of the Coronavirus. As he stated, the recent flow is not threatening provided that the recent dynamic of the epidemiological situation is maintained, therefore, the education process or conduction of elections will not be hindered. Otherwise, “if that we do not take care of our joint achievement, and if we have the same freedom as we had last year, then surely there is a risk of condition’s deterioration.”
The Head of NCDC noted that the cancellation of quarantine zones is not relevant for now, thus, the citizens of Georgia and other people with double citizenship still need to be quarantined when they arrive from abroad. As Gamkrelidze said, this is exactly one of the most efficient tools that are used to prevent the spread of the virus.
According to him, the last few days, when there was a slight increase in new cases of the coronavirus, were predictable since the economy is opening and the mobility is rising. He clarified that the current condition is controllable and does not bear any reason for panicking or worrying.
In the briefing, the matter of testing more people from the risk-groups on the Coronavirus was also mentioned.
“From today on, the process is extending and more people from the risk-groups will be engaged in testing. Alongside opening the economy and the politics of alleviating, the readiness of healthcare is needed to be more, in order for every infected person to be detected at an early stage. Employees of the reanimation and intensive therapy will be tested fortnightly in several clinics as well as the beneficiaries of nursing homes, the drivers of the trailers and the workers of public transport. ”
As Gamkrelidze noted, from July 1st the second and from July 15th the third phase of extending the scale of testing will begin. The aim is to reach the rate of 3000-3500 and then 4000-4500 testing a day, so as to cover all the risk groups. The third stage of testing includes dentists, pharmacists, and the workers of banks and the Public Service Hall.
As of June 15th, there is one new coronavirus case and 15 recoveries in Georgia. In total, 879 cases have been confirmed, 704 people have recovered and 14 have died. 2710 are quarantined and 267 individuals are hospitalised.
