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Wednesday, May 27, 2020 to fight coronavirus The Nicaraguan government presented the so-called "White Book” plan, where it defends the management it has made of the covid-19 pandemic in the country, reported the Voice of America Journal on Tuesday. According to the VOA report, it is a "balanced strategy" between the pandemic and the economy based on the fact that 40% of the population lives in the countryside and 80% of urban workers belong to the informal sector, where they earn their daily living. "We are defending the economic recovery of an economy weakened by the attempted coup d'état of April 2018, which continues to be under attack by false news campaigns and disinformation, as well as illegal coercive measures," said the government. The text adds that Nicaragua is in a better position today, "compared to the sixteen years of the neoliberal period" to face the pandemic, with more modernized health infrastructure. They have 18 new hospitals with more trained personnel, and strong emblematic and solidarity programs. This year, there are 36,649 workers compared to 22,083 in 2006. And 6,045 doctors in 2020 compared to 2,715 in 2006. The document states that until May 19, Nicaragua reported 279 cases of covid-19, of which 63 are active, while 199 patients have recovered and 17 have died. Although they do not specify the number of deaths due to "indeterminate cases" or the number of covid-19 tests that have been performed. First Lady and Vice President Rosario Murillo said the publication was distributed to the entire international community. “The White Book that was distributed to the people of Nicaragua and to the world. The book that we have circulated to all the media, embassies, organizations and also to our embassies in other countries,” she said. The Nicaraguan Ministry of Health searches for the epidemiological link of people with respiratory diseases, to determine if they have had contact with people who have traveled to countries where there are positive patients for coronavirus or if they have had contact with people who have presented symptoms of covid-19. "The Ministry of Health follows up patients who have symptoms of respiratory failure, to make a diagnosis if it is covid-19 or is a process of triggering their chronic condition in which they may have suffered decompensation for any reason" the government explained in their document. Álvaro Ramírez, former director of epidemiology at the Ministry of Health, strongly criticized the content of the document, calling it "a group of organized lies, a baseless repetition and scientific explanation, a government propaganda pamphlet and a false image that do something, but that truly does not represent a benefit for the Nicaraguan population." At the same time, he emphasized the irresponsibility of assuming herd immunity in the style of developed countries. "The decision to take Swedish-style herd immunity is unfounded and risky for the Nicaraguan people because the two societies cannot be compared under any circumstances," he said. Ramírez alludes to the fact that after weeks of denying the coronavirus pandemic, the "White Book" conveys how the Ortega government recognizes that the pandemic is here to stay and compares them to the Swedish model that is a developed country. Meanwhile Nicaragua is the second poorest country in Latin America. For the former health minister Dora María Téllez, the "White Book" is a "fiasco" since they only "cut and pasted" all the "propaganda" that the government has done for 10 years. According to Tellez, the "White Book" does not answer the questions that any international epidemiologist, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) would ask regarding the situation of the pandemic in Nicaragua. PAHO states in its reports that Nicaragua is clearly in the community transmission phase of the covid-19 pandemic, 68 days after the first case of contagion in the country was confirmed. However, the Ministry of Health has not yet openly recognized this phase and simply reiterates that "cases have been reported in outbreaks through clearly established contacts." In the informative table on accumulated cases of the countries that PAHO provides, updated May 24, it is reported that the “type of transmission” in Nicaragua is from “community transmission.” This phase, according to WHO, corresponds when countries experience larger outbreaks of local transmission and authorities can no longer identify the epidemiological link of the patient. --------------------- Could the lack of attention to the pandemic in Nicaragua affect Costa Rica strategy to contain the covid-19 in the country? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com |
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