#BTEditorial – Omicron surely changes things

We all knew it would only be a matter of time before the official announcement reporting confirmation that the Omicron variant is here. Only this week both neighbouring Trinidad,  St Vincent and St Kitts/Nevis reported their first cases.

And so Thursday during an afternoon Press Briefing Chief Medical Officer The Most Honourable Dr. Kenneth George verbalised the dreadful news.

Dr George said: “We have had confirmation of Omicron by the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) Laboratory.  A single case and to date that is the only confirmed case we have. However, I must couch that by saying that we have been doing testing, preliminary sequencing at the Best-Dos Santos Laboratory, and there is also preliminary evidence that Omicron is established in Barbados.”

Sadly, with all that is happening in Barbados right now Omicron and planned activities may prove to be the perfect storm if we aren’t vigilant.

The Old Year’s Night/New Year’s weekend is upon us. Social gatherings, limes, parties and fetes have been planned to celebrate the grand occasions.

Some of these activities will be held in the traditional hotels and nightspots while a few new venues have been added to the list.  Many churchgoers have registered for their Watch Night services which usher in the New Year.

Amid all these activities lurks the Omicon variant said to be highly contagious. It has led to an explosion of infections in each country the variant has reached since it was first identified by South African researchers.

Global health authorities have stressed that they don’t fully know how easily omicron spreads, how severe the illness it causes, or how well vaccines and drug treatments work against it.

According to early data from the UK, infections caused by the Omicron variant of the coronavirus do not appear to be less severe than infections from Delta which has led to a surge of illness and death since August.

Unfortunately, one of the requirements for entry into an entertainment event could be ineffective. On lifting the entertainment ban, Government requires that patrons be vaccinated or take a PCR test and show proof that it is negative.

And while, last week this protocol seemed to be enough to allow the safe reopening of the sector, now that Omicron is present being vaccinated just isn’t enough.

On Thursday in a drastic move the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned people not to go on cruises, regardless of their vaccination status, because of onboard outbreaks fuelled by Omicron.

The CDC said it has more than 90 cruise ships under investigation or observation as a result of COVID-19 cases. The agency did not disclose the number of overall infections.

“The virus that causes COVID-19 spreads easily between people in close quarters on board ships, and the chance of getting COVID-19 on cruise ships is very high, even if people are fully vaccinated and have received a booster,” the CDC said.

In Israel, they are now about to embark on something no other country in the world has done so far. The Middle East territory has approved a fourth vaccine dose for people most vulnerable to COVID-19.

The Ministry of Health there says the decision was based on early research, and that officials will consider expanding the administration of a fourth dose to more of the public as they assess the situation.

Israel saw a wave of infections blamed on the Delta variant, and officials are wary of another driven by the fast-spreading Omicron.

Our beloved country now faces this uphill battle should we be unable to contain the spread. Our airport protocols that allow certain categories of tourists to enter the country without being tested on reaching here, should be revised urgently.

One case is one too many given how rapidly this variant spreads.

Clearly, from the CDC report the cover of vaccination will not hold against Omicron. On Wednesday, the Government Information Service posted a report brief from the COVID-29 dashboard that was telling and unnerving all at the same time.

The report was on the patients in isolation facilities.

It read as follows: “Of these, 35 patients (30 per cent) were unvaccinated, and 76 (66 per cent) were fully vaccinated. Of those fully vaccinated, three patients were in primary isolation, 29 in secondary, and 44 were in tertiary isolation. The unvaccinated comprised 16 persons in primary, 13 in secondary, and six in tertiary isolation. Four persons, two in secondary and two in tertiary isolation, were partially vaccinated for COVID-19.

“It is important to note that the increase in fully vaccinated persons is due to a large proportion of tourists being admitted to the isolation facility from the Christmas week. Since vaccination rates are much higher for tourists than for the local population, this has driven up the fully vaccinated rate.”

The explanation, which was a first accompanying the COVID-19 daily dashboard, confirms the CDC’s assessment that the vaccine is not foolproof.

Indeed, experts have long cautioned that vaccinations do not prevent infection, but they are proven to prevent severe illness and even death.

We have to deal with the presence of the Omicon variant in a practical way or we may find ourselves smack dab in the middle of another wave.

The three weeks of campaigning which means candidates going door to door to canvass offers little comfort. The possibility of mass political meetings is not settling. Thousands seeking to cast their vote in one day has to be carefully thought out.

It matters not what we had planned prior to December 30, 2021 whether it be a fete, sports, church or a General Election, the awful truth is Omicron is here.