Turun Drastis Kasus Positif Covid-19 di Indonesia
Indonesia Records its Lowest Rate of Positive Coronavirus Tests
Editor : Kemal A Praghotsa
Translator : Novita Cahyadi
ANGKA positif kasus Covid-19 di Indonesia turun di bawah standar Organisasi Kesehatan Dunia [WHO] untuk pertama kalinya, yakni di bawah 5%. Berdasarkan laporan Satuan Tugas Covid-19 [Satgas Covid-19] kasus harian Covid-19 Indonesia berada di 4,43% pada Senin [7/9]
Tren penurunan tersebut menjadi yang terendah sejak kasus pertama Covid-19 di Indonesia pada Maret 2020, menurut inisiatif data independen, Kawal COVID-19.
Pendiri Kawal, Elina Ciptadi mengatakan, tren itu merupakan pertanda baik, meskipun data resmi tidak dapat menangkap kelangkaan kasus dan kematian yang tidak dilaporkan.
"Secara keseluruhan, apa yang kami lihat sangat menggembirakan," kata Elina.
Sejak puncak kasus pada Juli lalu, tingkat kepositifan rata-rata telah turun dengan mantap, dari 23,8% di minggu pertama Agustus menjadi 11,3% di minggu terakhir bulan itu, menjadi rata-rata 6,2% sejauh ini di bulan September, seperti dikutip Reuters yang dirilis MailOnline.
Sementara, Pakar epidemiologi Universitas Griffith Australia, Dicky Budiman mengatakan upaya pengujian dan penelusuran masih lemah.
"Saya senang sekaligus khawatir dengan penurunan tersebut," katanya. "Ada upaya dari pemerintah, tetapi tidak cukup kuat untuk mengeluarkan kita dari masa krisis,"
Dia menambahkan bahwa perbaikan baru terlihat signifikan di daerah Jabodetabek, terutama DKI Jakarta.
Berdasarkan data mingguan yang dirilis oleh Kementerian Kesehatan pekan lalu menunjukkan beberapa provinsi masih mencatat angka positif yang tinggi, dengan Aceh sebesar 17,4% dan Kalimantan Utara sebesar 16,7%.
INDONESIA´S daily coronavirus positivity rate dropped below the World Health Organization´s (WHO) benchmark standard of 5% this week for the first time, an indicator the country´s devastating second wave could be easing.
The positivity rate, or the proportion of people tested who are positive, peaked at 33.4% in July when Indonesia became Asia´s coronavirus epicentre, driven by the highly contagious Delta variant.
On Monday that rate fell to 4.57%, the lowest since March 2020, when Indonesia´s first cases were reported, according to independent data initiative, Kawal COVID-19.
A rate above 5% indicates coronvirus is out of control, the WHO says.
Kawal co-founder Elina Ciptadi said the trend was a good sign, although she cautioned that official data could not capture a dearth of underreported cases and deaths.
"All in all, what we are seeing is encouraging," she said.
Since its July peak, the average positivity rate has fallen steadily, from 23.8% in the first week of August to 11.3% in the final week of that month, to 6.2% on average so far in September
Coronavirus restrictions were eased further on Monday, with most areas on Java island downgraded, allowing conditional operation of malls, factories and restaurants.
But President Joko Widodo urged Indonesians not to be complacent.
"People need to realise that COVID is always lurking," he said. "When our guards are down, (cases) can increase again."
Epidemiologist Dicky Budiman from Australia´s Griffith University said testing and tracing efforts remain weak.
"I´m both happy and worried about the decline," he said. "There were efforts from the government, but not strong enough to get us out of the crisis period," he said, adding improvements were mostly in big cities.
Weekly health ministry data last week shows several provinces still recording high positivity rates, with Aceh at 17.4% and North Kalimantan at 16.7%.
COVID-19 task force spokesperson Wiku Adisasmito said the government would keep improving its testing and tracing capability.
"We´re hoping this good condition can be upheld," he added.
