5 unvaccinated persons new COVID-19 deaths

Five unvaccinated persons who contracted the novel coronavirus have died, hiking Guyana’s death count from the virus to an alarming 1,014.
Those deaths were announced by the Health Ministry on Thursday.
On December 9, a 61-year-old male from Region Four, a 58-year-old male from Region Five, a 58-year-old female from Region Four, and a 79-year-old male from Region Two succumbed. A 71-year-old male from Region Two died on December 8. This now brings the total deaths for December to 14.
Additionally, 69 new cases were detected in one day. From the 38,402 total confirmed cases since March 2020, 18,100 are males and the remaining 20,302 are females.
There are 14 persons in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), 47 in institutional isolation, 822 in home isolation, and one in institutional quarantine. For now, there are 36,505 recovered cases.
Since March 2020, some 401,972 tests were conducted.
Data shows that the new positives were dispersed among eight regions, with two in Region One (Barima-Waini), two in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), four in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), 24 in Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), seven in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice), 19 in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), eight in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) and three in Region 10 (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo). No new cases were reported in Regions Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) and Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo).

Vaccination
Vaccination coverage for adults is 405,043 first doses, or 79 per cent of the adult population. Second doses are pegged at 284,870, or 55.5 per cent of the adult population. For those between the ages of 12 and 17, some 20,849 persons, or 28.6 per cent, are fully vaccinated.
Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony has cautioned that the gap between first and second doses in the COVID-19 vaccination needs to be bridged, as it could leave many persons vulnerable.
“There are still lots of people who have not taken their first dose vaccines, and we can see that in every region. Some regions are worse off than others. Regions 10, Eight and Two continue to lag behind in terms of administration of first dose vaccine… From the numbers we have seen, there is that gap between first and second doses, and we want to close that gap by encouraging more people to get their second dose vaccination. If we don’t close that gap, then people would remain vulnerable, because they wouldn’t get the full benefits of the vaccine,” he articulated during Thursday’s COVID update.
For a country to achieve herd immunity, between 80 and 85 percent of persons resident therein must be completely vaccinated. With emergence of the new Omicron variant, the Health Minister has said, there might be a revision of this threshold.
“From these mutations, they’re postulating that a lot of things can happen. One is that Omicron is more transmissible, meaning that people can get infected quite easily, and some people who had COVID can get reinfected.
Apart from transmissibility of the Omicron variant, they also are now looking into whether this variant would cause more severe disease. It takes some time before that assessment can be done,” Dr Anthony has said.

Recent studies of vaccine effectiveness and the new variant suggests taking the booster dose for increased immunity. The uptake of booster doses has seen a steady increase, with latest figures showing a 4,448 uptake.
On the topic of vaccine mixing, Dr Anthony has noted that this allows for better efficacy. “Scientifically, it has been shown that if you mix and match the vaccine, that you can get better efficacy. That’s really the driving reason for people to mix and match. We have seen that done, and there are now probably 20 studies that would have verified that when you mix and match, you get better outcomes,” he clarified.
If anyone is displaying any of the symptoms associated with COVID-19, or need any additional information, they are asked to contact the COVID-19 Hotline: 231-1166, 226-7480 or 624-6674 immediately, or visit us at www.health.gov.gy
All Guyanese are reminded to observe the protocols of the COVID-19 emergency measures, which emphasise: the need for correct and consistent use of a face mask when leaving your home; the importance of maintaining the six feet physical distance from others; and the need for good hand-hygiene. (G12)