Gift of the Givers founder, Imtiaz Sooliman, has warned that government statistics do not reflect the real impact that the new Covid-19 Delta variant is having on South Africa.
Gift of the Givers founder, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, has warned that government statistics do not reflect the real impact that the new Covid-19 Delta variant is having on South Africa. “The situation is far worse than we understand,” he said. “A large number of patients, anything from 50% to 90% refuse to test. “These are related to economic challenges, stigma, and anxiety associated with a positive result. “Laboratory ‘hopping’ is a [another] new phenomenon among those who test positive, repeating it at other facilities in the hope that the initial result was incorrect.” As of Saturday, the Department of Health reported 17 958 new cases of the coronavirus, which represents a positivity rate of 25.6%. A further 157 Covid-19-related deaths have been reported, bringing total the total number of fatalities to 59 778. Sooliman is appealing to every person in SA to be responsible and protect the country’s fragile healthcare system. The current Covid-19 crisis has left both private and public hospitals in Gauteng filled to capacity. “There is neither space nor sufficient oxygen points at emergency departments,” Sooliman said. “Oxygen concentrators are in critical short supply as patients opt for home-based care, as an alternative means of survival and out of fear, anxiety and loneliness associated with hospital admission.
