Category: Self Care

Indonesia received doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine from the Government of Japan, through the cooperation between the two countries. The AstraZeneca vaccine doses will be sent to Indonesia gradually or in batches.

“The first batch, which totaled 224,000 doses, was received today at Soekarno-Hatta Airport,” Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said in a press release on Tuesday.

The phases of delivering vaccines from Japan will be carried out over six flights from 19th to 22nd October, 2021.

The delivery is the 92nd delivery of vaccines to the country, meaning the total number of vaccines that have arrived is now 285,300,400, both in the form of raw materials and finished products.

According to Marsudi, the 1,990,910 doses were the result of a dose-sharing bilateral cooperation agreement, which was also the second set of support from the government of Japan for the government and community of Indonesia.

In July 2021, Indonesia received 2,161,240 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine from Japan, which was then distributed throughout many regions in the country.

The dose-sharing cooperation between Indonesia and Japan was a concrete follow-up to the results of his conversations with Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu, she said.

Those conversations included a bilateral meeting during the United Nations General Assembly in New York on 23rd September, 2021.

Marsudi stressed the cooperation reflects the friendship between the peoples of Indonesia and Japan, which is continuing to grow even during difficult times, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Considering Japan’s role as one of Indonesia’s main economic partners, Indonesian-Japanese cooperation will help accelerate the economic recovery of each country post-pandemic,” she explained.

In addition to dose-sharing cooperation, Marsudi stated, “From the beginning, Japan has provided other support for Indonesia in overcoming the pandemic and improving health resilience.”

This support included medicines, such as Avigan, as well as mobile x-rays and other assistance through international organizations, she added.

Source: Antara News

The Indonesian Pulmonologist Association (PDPI) strives to treat patients ailing from long COVID-19 to be covered by funds from the Health Care and Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan).

“Currently, patients suffering from long COVID-19 are not covered by BPJS,” Head of the Work Team from PDPI Erlina Burhan stated at a training for media related to drugs and vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic organized by the National Agency of Drug and Food Control (BPOM) on Tuesday.

Burhan noted that her side had conveyed to related stakeholders that long COVID-19 often experienced by COVID-19 patients had been included in the World Health Organization (WHO) guidebook.

“If long COVID-19 is included in the manual, then it will be endorsed by the Ministry of Health and covered by BPJS,” she remarked.

The pulmonary specialist from the Department of Pulmonology and Respiratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Indonesia, is currently drafting a protocol as input for the revision in the new guidelines.

“We are preparing the protocol to be recognized by the Ministry of Health and will be covered by BPJS. There have been talks there,” she noted.

The preparation of the protocol, includes drug variants and treatment methods for long COVID-19 patients, Burhan remarked.

On a separate occasion, a health science expert from the University of Indonesia, Professor Tjandra Yoga Aditama, drew attention to economic aspects and health insurance pertaining to long COVID-19.

Aditama noted that the WHO had gathered expert opinions from various countries in the form of the Delphi Consensus to define the long COVID-19 condition that had been published on October 6, 2021.

Survivors often complained of various symptoms that are quite prolonged after being cured of COVID-19. Some symptoms lasted for weeks or even months after recovering.

Aditama stated that long COVID-19 can be experienced in probable or confirmed COVID-19 cases. Usually, complaints arise after three months since the first symptom, with such effects lasting for at least two months.

Patients usually complain about symptoms, such as abdominal pain, menstrual disorders, smell and tasting problem, anxiety, blurred vision, chest pain, cough, depression, dizziness, and fever that comes and goes.

Other symptoms can also be gastrointestinal disorders, both diarrhea and constipation, and acid reflux, headaches, memory problems, joint pain, muscle aches, neuralgia, new forms of allergies, sleep disorders, palpitations, and also hearing problems.

“From the point of view of the health economy, there must be a financial mechanism, so that long COVID-19 patients can continue to receive good medical treatment without being burdened with costs. This is in accordance with the Universal Health Care (UHC) principle adopted by the world,” he added.

Source: Antara News

Indonesia is making defensive and offensive moves in carrying out transition from the pandemic to the endemic phase, COVID-19 Task Force’s health management chief, Alexander Ginting, said during an online discussion here on Tuesday.

The defensive move involves reducing the pace of COVID-19 cases by stringently implementing the 3Ms (masking, maintaining distance, and hand-washing) and achieving a high vaccination rate, he highlighted.

There are five indicators for undertaking the defensive move, he said. First, the confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 should be under 20 per 100 thousand people, he informed.

Second, the number of COVID-19 patients undergoing treatment in hospitals should be under five patients per 100 thousand people per week, he said.

Third, the number of death cases due to COVID-19 should be under one case per 100 thousand per week, he said.

Fourth, the first dose of COVID-19 vaccination coverage should be 70 percent minimum among the public and 60 percent among the elderly, he said.

Finally, compliance with the health protocols in executing the 3Ms should be above 50 percent, he added.

Meanwhile, Ginting informed that the offensive move involves expanding the 3Ts — testing, tracing, and treatment.

“Its indicator is that the COVID-19 positivity rate should be under 5 percent in accordance with the WHO (World Health Organization) standards,” he explained.

In addition, contact tracing should cover up to at least 15 contacts of every confirmed COVID-19 patient, and the hospital bed occupancy rate for COVID-19 patients should be controlled, he said.

“With these offensive and defensive measures, we hope that we are able to preserve community transmission at Level one and adequate response at Level one can be maintained,” Ginting said.

“All cities, districts, and agglomeration areas should be encouraged so that the (PPKM) public activity restriction will no longer rise to Level three or four,” he added.

Source: Antara News

The Ministry of Manpower will optimize the role of the Occupational Safety and Health Committee (P2K3) to control and suppress the rate of COVID-19 transmission at workplaces.

“We will evaluate the role of P2K3 in companies to help to enforce health protocols at the workplace in order to encourage all workers to comply with health protocols wherever they are,” Directorate General of Manpower Supervision and Occupational Safety and Health of the Ministry of Manpower, Haiyani Rumondang, noted in a written statement received here, Tuesday.

According to Rumondang, the Manpower Ministry has issued a Circular Letter of the Minister of Manpower Number 9 of 2021 on optimizing the implementation of health protocols at the workplace and providing health equipment and facilities to workers or laborers by companies amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rumondang noted that the circular serves to appeal to regional heads to take strategic actions in handling COVID-19, especially at workplaces.

The fifth point of the circular emphasized the optimization of P2K3 in companies in formulating and implementing strategic steps as a precautionary measure against an emergency, Rumondang stated.

“Companies not having a P2K3 can form an internal COVID-19 task force that will be tasked with coordinating with the local government’s task force,” she affirmed.

Rumondang explained that the Occupational Safety and Health Committee (P2K3) is an independent institution in the workplace that provides cooperation between employers or administrators and workers or laborers to develop mutual understanding and effective participation in the implementation of Occupational Safety and Health.

Earlier, the Ministry of Manpower had held a virtual meeting for the P2K3 nationwide, with attendees comprising heads of the provincial manpower offices, P2K3, and labor inspectors. The forum was intended to evaluate the effectiveness of P2K3’s role in handling the COVID-19 pandemic in the business or industrial world.

Source: Antara News

With 69.44 percent of its population receiving the first coronavirus vaccine dose, Bekasi District is close to achieving herd immunity, the district’s COVID-19 task force has said.

 

“We hope to achieve herd immunity soon as we have administered the first vaccine dose to 69.44 percent of the district’s residents as of last Sunday (October 17, 2021),” Deputy Spokesperson of Bekasi District’s COVID-19 Task Force Masrikoh informed in Cikarang, here on Monday.

 

Based on the latest data, the first vaccine dose has been administered to 1,678,894 residents, or 69.44 percent of the total 2,417,794 residents targeted for vaccinations, she said.

 

The deputy spokesperson expressed confidence the district would reach the 70-percent vaccination coverage prerequisite laid down by the World Health Organization (WHO) for achieving herd immunity status at the end of October 2021.
“We need support from stakeholders to expedite the vaccination effort, and unvaccinated residents should immediately register for the vaccination in their localities,” Masrikoh said.

 

Around 996,801 residents, or 41.23 percent of the targeted recipients, have received their second vaccine dose, she added.

 

Of the total 296,174 teenagers in the 12-17 age group targeted for vaccination, 111,328 have received their first vaccine dose and 94,655 have completed their second dose, the deputy spokesperson informed.

 

Seventy percent vaccination coverage is the main prerequisite to improve the activities restriction enforcement (PPKM) status in the district, currently designated at level 3, to level 2, Masrikoh said.
“Cities within the Jabodetabek agglomeration area are currently assisting each other on pandemic control, and I am convinced they all are exerting their utmost effort to increase the vaccination coverage in their cities,” she added.

 

The Bekasi authorities are committed to expediting vaccination coverage by all means possible, including hosting vaccination drives at public locations, collaborating with midwives, and hosting vaccinations on boats to ensure vaccine coverage in the remotest areas of the district, she affirmed.

Source: Antara News

The Foreign Affairs Ministry has detailed efforts made by the government to protect Indonesian citizens (WNI) from the death penalty abroad.

“There are three principles that we adhere to protect Indonesian citizens which are regulated in the Minister of Foreign Affairs’ Regulation Number 5 of 2018,” Director for the Protection of Citizens and Legal Entities Overseas at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Judha Nugraha, said here on Monday.

The first is prioritizing the responsible parties, he said. Second, the government does not take any criminal or civil responsibility, he added. Lastly, the protection is provided in accordance with national law, local state law, and customary international law, he continued.

“We do not give impunity to our citizens who commit crimes abroad, but the duty of our state is to provide legal assistance,” Nugraha remarked.

The legal assistance is intended to ensure Indonesian citizens facing legal action in other countries have fair access to their rights, he said.

Efforts to protect Indonesian citizens from the death penalty in foreign countries also depend on the country imposing the sentence, he added. For example, Saudi Arabia and Middle Eastern countries usually refer to Islamic law, he explained.

“In Islamic countries, there are three types of murder cases, namely hadd, takzir, and kisas,” Nugraha said.

However, murder cases in those countries are generally included in kisas, he added. For kisas, there is an apology mechanism that is carried out or given by the victim’s family, he elaborated.

In addition, the state has also made a number of other efforts to help Indonesian citizens in foreign countries encountering problems with the law through litigation and non-litigation steps, he said.

Legal efforts taken include consular access, appointment of lawyers and translators, and other efforts according to the law in the local country, he informed.

Diplomatic efforts include diplomacy at the bilateral level through lobbying or diplomatic notes and approaching the sultan or the local state government, he said.

The government can also approach the victim’s family, provide moral support, and campaign for public awareness, he added.

Source: Antara News

Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, has urged Indonesians to exercise caution considering the possibility of a COVID-19 third wave during Christmas and New Year’s Eve this year.

“We urge residents to abide by the health protocols as we need to be cautious of the possible COVID-19 third wave that may occur during the Christmas and New Year’s Eve; we should be vigilant,” the minister said during a weekly press conference on the activities restriction enforcement (PPKM), which was broadcast by the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel from Jakarta on Monday.

President Joko Widodo has pointed to continued health protocol violations at marriage receptions, tourist attractions, and other events and locations that draw crowds, noted Pandjaitan, who is also serving as the PPKM coordinator for the Java-Bali region.

The recent decline in COVID-19 infections in Java-Bali regions is in concert with the national trend in cases, which has registered a decline, he said.
At present, 18 thousand active cases have been registered nationwide, with Java-Bali regions recording around 7 thousand active cases, a huge improvement from the 570 thousand active cases recorded on July 15, 2021, during the peak of the second COVID-19 wave, the coordinating minister informed.

Several provinces recording zero daily COVID-19 deaths is also proof of the improving pandemic situation in Indonesia, he added.

“Jakarta, West Java, Yogyakarta, and Bali recorded zero COVID-19 deaths on October 17, 2021, while other provinces recorded less than five deaths,” Pandjaitan informed.

Despite the recent improvements in the COVID-19 pandemic situation, Pandjaitan reiterated the importance of continued adherence to the health protocols as the authorities strive to increase national vaccination coverage.

“We need to understand that the current vaccination rate in Java-Bali regions is only at 43 percent, and we are striving to first achieve 70 percent vaccination coverage among the elderly in two months,” he added. (

Source: Antara News

The US government and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) signed a new five-year agreement to support Indonesia’s response to the immediate risks of the COVID-19 pandemic and its long-term impacts on children.

The US government inked the new five-year agreement with UNICEF through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), according to a statement issued by the US Embassy in Jakarta on Monday.

“COVID-19 has changed the lives of children in Indonesia, but this pandemic should not deny the children’s rights to a healthy future and to realize their full potential,” USAID Indonesia Mission Director, Ryan Washburn, stated.

“USAID’s continued partnership with UNICEF will expand our support for Indonesia at this critical time,” he remarked.
The agreement encompasses a US$10-million grant to expedite widespread and equitable delivery of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines and to strengthen health systems to better detect, prevent, and respond to COVID-19 that will ultimately reduce illness, deaths, and the spread of the disease.

Moreover, UNICEF will receive a separate US$9-million grant from USAID to support the procurement of critical medical supplies.

USAID’s funding also launched the #COVID19Diaries digital campaign that has provided a platform to youngsters to share their experiences during the pandemic and contributed to the distribution of water, sanitation, and hygiene supplies to over 3.5 million beneficiaries.

“As Indonesia begins to recover from the recent COVID-19 surge, we must remain vigilant in our efforts against the virus and remember that the pandemic is not over yet,” UNICEF representative Debora Comini emphasized.

“Millions of children and their communities across the country continue to see drastic impacts on their health, education, and protection. Through this contribution from the United States, UNICEF can continue to support Indonesia to respond to the urgent needs resulting from COVID-19 and the serious repercussions for children that will outlast the current pandemic,” she stated.

Source: Antara News