According to Zhang Wenhong, head of the National Center for Infectious Diseases, the peak infection will also raise the prevalence of severe disease, affecting all available medical resources.
China Coronavirus Outbreak
According to reports, China has experienced a significant increase in Covid-19 instances over the past week due to the abrupt implementation of its “Zero-Covid” policy. China has stated that it anticipates the peak to occur within a week. Health officials informed state media that the rise would result in a spike in infection rates that would endure for one to two months.
China “is likely to reach the peak of illnesses within a week,” according to Zhang Wenhong, head of the National Center for Infectious Diseases, according to Shanghai government-backed news site The Paper on Thursday. “The peak infection will also raise the rate of serious disease, which will have some effect on our entire medical resources,” he added, adding that the wave will continue for another one or two months. We need to prepare our minds for the possibility of infection.
Less than 4,000 new symptomatic local COVID cases have been recorded by China so far for December 22, and for the third day in a row, there have been no recent COVID deaths. China announced its first official fatality on December 19 after easing pandemic restrictions and abandoning its “zero-COVID” policy. The government’s decision to tighten the standards for COVID deaths has drawn harsh condemnation worldwide.
According to a new regulation by the Chinese government, persons who pass away due to respiratory failure and complications caused by any coronavirus variation would be included in the Covid death statistics. The counting method violates the World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommendations. The death toll now published is significantly lower than the actual death toll due to this rule.
According to the most recent projections based on local sources, China is expected to experience more than a million infections daily and more than 5,000 fatalities daily, according to a report released by the British health data company Airfinity. Social media footage shows that, as a result, hospitals are overcrowded, morgues are overflowing, and crematoriums are overworked and unable to handle the enormous volume of bodies. A Shanghai hospital predicted that 25 million residents of the business hub would be infected by the end of the following week. According to experts, China could see over a million COVID fatalities in 2023.
WHO’s Concern
In various regions of the country, hospitals have been cited by the WHO as a cause for concern. According to the report, even if China’s death toll is zero, the intensive care units (ICU) appear to be overcrowded and busy. Dr. Michael Ryan, the head of WHO’s emergency response, has encouraged China to share more information regarding the virus’s most recent outbreak. According to reports, there are few cases in ICUs in China, but anecdotally, the facilities are becoming increasingly crowded, the expert added. During the weekly news conference in Geneva, WHO Director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he is “apprehensive over the evolving situation in China.” He pleaded for detailed information on the severity of the illness, hospital admissions, and the need for special treatment.
New Counting Rule
According to the Chinese government, those who pass away as a direct result of respiratory failure and complications brought on by any coronavirus variation will be included in the COVID death statistics. Compared to its western counterparts, the Communist Party of China, which is currently in power, claims that its recently adopted “Zero COVID” approach is the best one for combating the pandemic. There were reportedly only 5,242 COVID-related deaths up until December 19 after the implementation of Zero COVID policies, as opposed to 1.1 million in the United States, which is the most significant number of any nation.
Hospitals and cemeteries, however, are reporting a different truth in the cities of Beijing, Chongqing, and Guangzhou. According to news reports, emergency demands have increased to 30,000 per day from an average of approximately 5,000, and Beijing hospitals, funeral homes, and crematoriums are having trouble keeping up.
Workers at funeral homes in Beijing claim that there has been an increase in people looking to cremate departed relatives, causing lines and delays, according to a Reuters report. The deceased are being carried inside by employees wearing hazmat suits as security officers watch from outside the crematoriums in Beijing. Numerous sources claim that crematoriums currently handle up to 22–30 cremations daily. Before December, just 5 or 6 people were involved.