Bahrain delays start of new school term amid rise in coronavirus cases
Authorities in Bahrain have also urged citizens and residents to avoid public gatherings over the next two weeks
Authorities in Bahrain on Wednesday urged citizens and residents to avoid public gatherings over the next two weeks in a bid to control increasing numbers of confirmed cases of coronavirus across the kingdom.
At a press conference, Dr Waleed Khalifa Al Manea, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Health and member of the National Taskforce for Combating the Coronavirus, said that there was a strong connection between private gatherings and the recent rise in Covid-19 cases in in the country.
Al Manea also confirmed that the start of the new academic school year would be postponed by two weeks in order to scale-up coronavirus testing of teachers and administrative staff.
Restaurants will also be closely monitored as they re-open.
There have been 56,778 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the kingdom since the start of the pandemic, which has claimed the lives of more than 200 people in the country.
Al Manea said the recovery rate is currently at 90.83 percent with a 0.35 percent death rate. Isolation centre capacity stands at 19.2 percent, with 1,566 out of 8,149 beds occupied.
Dr Jameela Salman, consultant of Infectious and Internal Diseases at Salmaniya Medical Complex and member of the National Medical Taskforce for Combating the Coronavirus, confirmed there are 4,972 stable cases from a total of 5,002 active cases. Currently, 90 Covid-19 cases are receiving treatment, of which 30 are in a critical condition. Al Salman noted that 1,194,000 tests have been conducted to date.
In terms of vaccine trials, Lt Col Manaf Al Qahtani, infectious disease consultant and microbiologist at the BDF Hospital and member of the National Taskforce for Combating the Coronavirus confirmed that over 3,000 participants have joined the phase III clinical trial, held in collaboration with G42 Healthcare, an artificial intelligence company based in the UAE.
Manaf added that the vaccine trial, which aims to enlist up to 6,000 adults, welcomes volunteers over the age of 18 at the Bahrain International Exhibition & Convention Centre between the hours of 8am and 8pm.
At a press conference, Dr Waleed Khalifa Al Manea, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Health and member of the National Taskforce for Combating the Coronavirus, said that there was a strong connection between private gatherings and the recent rise in Covid-19 cases in in the country.
Al Manea also confirmed that the start of the new academic school year would be postponed by two weeks in order to scale-up coronavirus testing of teachers and administrative staff.
Restaurants will also be closely monitored as they re-open.
There have been 56,778 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the kingdom since the start of the pandemic, which has claimed the lives of more than 200 people in the country.
Al Manea said the recovery rate is currently at 90.83 percent with a 0.35 percent death rate. Isolation centre capacity stands at 19.2 percent, with 1,566 out of 8,149 beds occupied.
Dr Jameela Salman, consultant of Infectious and Internal Diseases at Salmaniya Medical Complex and member of the National Medical Taskforce for Combating the Coronavirus, confirmed there are 4,972 stable cases from a total of 5,002 active cases. Currently, 90 Covid-19 cases are receiving treatment, of which 30 are in a critical condition. Al Salman noted that 1,194,000 tests have been conducted to date.
In terms of vaccine trials, Lt Col Manaf Al Qahtani, infectious disease consultant and microbiologist at the BDF Hospital and member of the National Taskforce for Combating the Coronavirus confirmed that over 3,000 participants have joined the phase III clinical trial, held in collaboration with G42 Healthcare, an artificial intelligence company based in the UAE.
Manaf added that the vaccine trial, which aims to enlist up to 6,000 adults, welcomes volunteers over the age of 18 at the Bahrain International Exhibition & Convention Centre between the hours of 8am and 8pm.