Good News, WHO Sends Aid 700 Oxygen Concentrators To Indonesia

Illustration (Pixabay)

JAKARTA - The World Health Organization has brought 700 units of oxygen concentrators along with supporting equipment to Indonesia to help treat patients in need.

"We cannot fight this pandemic alone, we must do it together. We cannot exclusively save certain groups, organizations, or countries. We must work inclusively with all groups of people in the world to overcome this pandemic", said the Health Minister, Budi Gunadi Sadikin, through a written statement received in Jakarta, reported by Antara, Monday, August 9.

Budi said the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in Indonesia was putting significant pressure on the health care system. One of the pressing challenges is maintaining an adequate supply of oxygen to treat patients with COVID-19 disease.

Since the oxygen concentrator aid arrived at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on Friday, August 6, the Ministry of Health has immediately allocated the breathing apparatus for health facilities spread across Indonesia.

"We welcome and appreciate Indonesia's support in our efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic", he said.

WHO representative in Indonesia Dr. N Paraniethara provided technical support to the Ministry of Health through partners by deploying technical staff to assist the Ministry of Health in dealing with the pandemic.

According to Paraniethara, WHO also supports the efforts of stakeholders in Indonesia to accelerate the distribution of national vaccinations to protect Indonesian people starting from the most vulnerable.

"The mobilization of critical support tools to tackle COVID-19 to Indonesia is one of the efforts that show global solidarity to overcome global threats", he said.

He said WHO had received reports related to the limited oxygen supply due to intensive care in hospitals that had exceeded the capacity of available services.

"We need support at the national and international levels to tackle this problem together", he said.

Paraniethara said Indonesia was one of the countries that reported a significant increase in new cases and deaths in the past month.

"The Indonesian government continues to study the experiences of other countries for strategies to deal with the surge in COVID-19 cases by increasing testing, tracing, and treatment efforts and imposing the strictest restrictions that Indonesia has ever implemented during the pandemic to curb the transmission of COVID-19", he said.