MOH should include other markers in daily COVID-19 report to give public 'more holistic view' of current situation: Gerald Giam by The Online Citizen

MOH should include other markers in daily COVID-19 report to give public 'more holistic view' of current situation: Gerald Giam by The Online Citizen

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The Ministry of Health (MOH) should not only report figures of new infections in its daily updates, but also include other markers such as the Risk Index to give members of the public a more holistic view of the current COVID-19 situation in Singapore, said Aljunied GRC Member of Parliament, Gerald Giam. Speaking in Parliament on Monday (26 July), Mr Giam said that the index could weigh up various factors including vaccination rates, hospitalisation rates, positive rates during testing, contact tracing efficiency, new infections per 100,000 people and the infection risk in other countries, among others. This index can serve as a guide to both policymakers and the public to understand the current risk levels and adapt accordingly. Such an index can also help to assure the public that the Safe Management Measures (SMMs) imposed by the Government are appropriate, which may result in greater voluntary compliance, he said. “Voluntary compliance is key in our battle against the virus, as demonstrated by the KTV cluster outbreak, which was most likely caused by a wilful disregard of social distancing regulations.” Mr Giam also raised the issue of vaccine hesitancy among “a small minority” of Singapore’s population, stating that boosting the voices of “independent medical experts” would work better than “getting Ministers to do skits with celebrities”, especially targeting those who may be distrustful of authorities. “Based on the reasons they articulate, it appears that a lot of their understanding about vaccinations is fuelled by confusing information they receive from friends through private messaging platforms. I myself receive a daily stream of such messages from friends and residents,” he said. “I have heard accusations of vaccine manufacturers colluding with governments to promote their vaccines, that the vaccines have not been fully approved and are therefore merely experimental, or that Singapore is biased towards or against vaccines from some countries,” he added. As such, beyond the medical field, experts in business, international relations and culture also have a role to play in countering misinformation about vaccines, said Mr Giam. “This must be done soon, before the window of opportunity to change minds closes. Once news about large COVID clusters fades from the headlines, the impetus to get vaccinated will decrease,” he said.

Uploaded 2021-07-27T11:39:51.000Z Aerials and Satellites Wakefield