Head of the professional development division of the Indonesian Epidemiologists Association (PAEI), Masdalina Pane, has urged the community to strengthen the health protocols to prevent the spread of the XBB variant of COVID-19.

“The community must strengthen the health protocols because the XBB variant has been found in Indonesia,” she said when contacted on Tuesday.

Pane, who is also a researcher at the Public Health Research Center of the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), explained that the XBB or the BA.2.10 variant has become a reminder of the need for compliance in wearing masks, washing hands, and avoiding crowds.

“The emergence of the new variant has also highlighted the need for protecting vulnerable groups such as older adults, children, and people with comorbidities from infection,” she added.

Through good compliance with the health protocols, a potential surge in cases may be suppressed, she said.

“What’s important is the capacity of testing, tracing, and treatment must be continuously improved as part of efforts to prevent COVID-19 spread,” she added.

She further noted that the capacity of testing, tracing, and treatment is also very important in order to support the transition to the endemic phase.

According to her, by increasing the capacity of testing, the actual number of cases in the community can be obtained.

Earlier on Friday (October 21, 2022), Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin stated that the XBB variant had been detected in Indonesia, and the government was monitoring the development of the case.

The minister emphasized that the country is not yet safe from the pandemic.

The first case of COVID-19 in Indonesia was confirmed in March 2020. According to data from the COVID-19 Handling Task Force, as of October 25, 2022, the nation has recorded 6,475,672 COVID-19 cases, 6,297,282 recoveries, and 158,475 deaths.

Source: Antara News