Ministry Of Health: 36.488 COVID-19 Patients Treated In Hospital

UNSPLASH ILLUSTRATION

JAKARTA - Spokesperson for the Ministry of Health, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, reported that the hospital occupancy rate for treating COVID-19 patients in Indonesia reached 38 percent of the total isolation capacity and 80.000 ICU beds.

"Based on data on February 20, 2022, there are around 36.488 COVID-19 patients who have been hospitalized nationally or 38 percent," said Siti Nadia Tarmizi, quoted by Antara, Tuesday, February 22.

She said as many as 26 percent or the equivalent of 9.632 patients of whom were suspected or possibly infected with COVID-19. Meanwhile, 74 percent or the equivalent of 26.856 were filled by patients who were confirmed positive for COVID-19.

Nadia, who also serves as Secretary of the Directorate General of Public Health at the Indonesian Ministry of Health, said the number showed an increasing trend when compared to the situation on Saturday, February 19, as many as 23.905 patients.

Meanwhile, the accumulated number of COVID-19 patients undergoing treatment in hospitals along with the Omicron wave from December 2021 to February 19, 2022, totaled 123.905 patients. A total of 32 percent were asymptomatic and 39 percent had mild symptoms.

Meanwhile, treatment places for patients with moderate to critical symptoms have only been filled by about 29 percent of the isolation beds or ICU currently available.

According to Nadia, this number shows an increasing trend even though the number is relatively safe when compared to the availability of service rooms in hospitals nationally, amounting to 80,000 isolation beds and ICU units.

"The condition of isolation beds and ICUs currently provided by the government is not as large as last year's Delta wave. This means that we can expand to reach 150.000 beds," she said.

Nadia said the support for telemedicine services for self-isolated patients (isoman) succeeded in easing the burden of services at hospitals and health workers effectively up to 71 percent.

"We also have to immediately implement a regulation that limits patients with moderate to critical symptoms who will be hospitalized," she said.