There Is A Negative Stigma For COVID-19 Survivors, The Task Force Is Asked To Improve Communication

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JAKARTA - Epidemiologist from Australia's Griffith University Dicky Budiman requested that the Task Force for Handling COVID-19 improve their communication patterns to be more informative, especially regarding COVID-19 survivors.

According to him, this needs to be done so that there is no more negative stigma for COVID-19 patients who have been declared negative in society. Because, things like this still happen even though the COVID-19 pandemic has entered its 11th month.

"I think the communication mechanism must be improved because it is clear," said Dicky when contacted by VOI, Thursday, February 4.

Even so, he still asked the survivors of COVID-19 who had just been tested negative not to immediately carry out their activities, even though they had completed independent isolation for 14 days according to the World Health Organization (WHO) reference. This is because, in certain cases, especially patients with severe symptoms never tested negative even though they had carried out independent isolation for 20 days.

Furthermore, he also understands that currently there is a WHO recommendation stating that COVID-19 patients who have been self-isolating for 14 days do not need to be re-tested. However, he suggested, people in Indonesia who have just completed running independent isolation do not directly engage in activities outside the home.

As an example of China, said Dicky, COVID-19 survivors should increase their independent isolation time at their respective homes for 14 days. He considered this to better ensure the health of the survivors and prevent further transmission.

"I suggest yes (after, red) two weeks of isolation, then he stays at home for two weeks," he said.

He considered this step to be important considering that currently there is still no research or scientific literature regarding the certainty of virus transmission after 14 days of self-isolation.

"Better to say if it does not allow the test plus just stay at home while working from home (WFH) in two weeks," he said.

"So, for example, if he gets treatment in a centralized isolation, then he is allowed to go home, he must add two weeks at home, but yes, this needs education too," he concluded.