Certainly, we are not in normal times; perhaps we are in more abnormal times than before. There is, therefore, the need to step up efforts at individual level, community, work places more than before to complement the national efforts at breaking the transmission of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that is responsible for the deadly COVID-19.
More deadly and devastating now is the discovery of the new variant of the COVID-19 that is spreading faster and negating efforts that have been made in slowing down the infection rate.
In fact, the world was at the brink of bringing the disease under control, after one year of battle, spearheaded by the World Health Organisation (WHO), when suddenly a variant of the disease sprung at the blind side of everyone, returning us all to square one.
In Ghana, we lowered our guard and became complacent only for us to be caught off guard.
Time and again, the President had cautioned us, through his regular nationwide broadcast, not to lower our guard but we appeared nonchalant when we had significant recoveries, creating the impression that that we had tamed the disease.
Not at all, the non-observance of the health protocol is contributing to the resurgence of the disease, more deadlier, as evidenced from the statistics which keep rising.
The country’s burden of COVID-19 case count now stands at 65,427 since the disease started spreading in the country a little over a year ago, though with some recoveries.
Nevertheless, active COVID-19 cases now stand 4,665 with new cases of 797 and a meteoric rise in the death to 405.
Life is precious, Ghana needs everyone safe and healthy. Consequently, we re-emphasise the need for Ghanaians to religiously observe the health protocol of regular hand washing under running water, use of alcohol-based sanitiser, proper wearing of the nose masks, keeping physical distant by avoiding social gatherings to break the transmission chain.
At the individual level, let’s also take our destiny into own hands by eating healthy and nutritious foods, especially vegetables to boost our immune system so as to ward off any infections, because at all times “Prevention is better than cure.”
Significantly, we re-echo the advise by Dr Mrs Augustina Angelina Sylverken, a Clinical Microbiologist, with the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research into Tropical Medicine, to Ghanaians to religiously adhere to the COVID-19 safety protocols describing it as “immediate vaccine” to fight the spread of the disease.
Indeed, the scientific community has discovered vaccines that are being rolled out in some countries to protect the population against the disease.
In Ghana, the government has assured of procuring the vaccines to add to our tools in the fight against the disease.
Before then safety first! Indeed, observing the health protocol is the firtstline of defence against the spread of the disease, which is non-negotiable.
It must be stated that vaccines are not the only panacea to fighting the disease. Vaccines serve as additional tool to the measures already in place to stop further transmission of the infection in the population.
We must not throw caution to the wind into believing that COVID-19 vaccine will do it all. While we are waiting for the vaccines, let’s use the “immediate vaccine” at our disposal to save our lives.
Strictly, observing the health protocols are the cheapest and safest “vaccines” we know so far.
