Michael Abrahams | Lethal governmental arrogance

We are a painfully undisciplined lot. One year ago, on August 24, 2020, I wrote a column titled ‘COVID-19 is a test of our discipline – and we failed’. That has not changed. We are now experiencing our third COVID-19 wave, and our indiscipline has undoubtedly contributed to this, and we must take much of the responsibility.

However, our Government is not blameless. As a matter of fact, the leadership of this country has made decisions that have placed us directly in harm’s way. The decision to simultaneously significantly relax curfew hours, allow larger gatherings, and grant permission for large parties, including the infamous Dream Weekend, was not in our best interest. And this is not just a matter of opinion. There is data to support this.

Countries with low vaccination rates are more vulnerable regarding the spread of COVID-19, and at the time the decision was made, less than three per cent of the population was fully vaccinated. And we were running out of vaccines. Also, our positivity rate was not consistently below five per cent. The World Health Organization (WHO) has advised governments that before reopening, rates of positivity in testing should remain at five per cent or lower for at least 14 days. However, on June 22, 2021, the day Prime Minister Andrew Holness announced the relaxation of the protocols, our positivity rate was reported to be 7.7 per cent. On June 17 it was 10 per cent.

DELTA VARIANT

To make matters worse, at that time the dreaded Delta variant was spreading across the world, being present in over 90 countries. The WHO stated that the Delta variant is the most transmissible variant of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) we have seen so far, and will “pick off” the most vulnerable, as it has the potential “to be more lethal because it is more efficient in the way it transmits between humans”. The consensus was that it has the propensity to cause more severe disease, resulting in more hospitalisations, and is also more resistant to vaccines.

Meanwhile, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the prevalence of the Delta strain more than doubled over the two-week period ending on June 19. With daily flights to and from the USA, it was inevitable that the Delta variant would reach Jamaica, if it was not already here. However, while countries with high vaccination rates such as Israel (58 per cent) and the United Kingdom (48 per cent) decided to be cautious and not relax their protocols, we decided to open up. It was a horrible idea.

The timing of the new measures and extent to which the protocols were relaxed, were a recipe for disaster. At the time, every colleague of mine I discussed the situation with, including some who shared their opinions publicly, was uncomfortable with the changes and opposed them. We all knew the virus would spread like wildfire and that in two to three weeks’ time there would be a spike in cases. And surely enough, that is exactly what happened.

Unfortunately, the prime minister stated on July 21 (three weeks after the new rules were introduced, when a surge was expected) that the spread of COVID-19 was being driven by “indiscipline and lack of adherence to protocols”. In other words, it was purely our fault. Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie also echoed his sentiments. On July 26, when the prime minister announced tightening of the measures at a press briefing, the first question posed to him was by a journalist, who asked if the new measures were an admission that the Government was wrong to have opened up the country the way they had. He denied the Government did anything wrong and advised against “playing the blame game” (although he had previously blamed the populace for their unruly behaviour). What the Government did was akin to a landlord hearing that a hurricane is approaching, opening the windows on his rented property, and then blaming the tenants for damage to furniture caused by wind and rain.

SPIRALLING UPWARDS

Today, as I write this, we are in lockdown. Positive cases, hospitalisations, and deaths are spiralling upwards, and our heath sector and its workers are overwhelmed. On the day the relaxation of measures was announced, 119 people were hospitalised, with five in critical condition, and there were 1,037 deaths. On August 22, 2021, 573 people were hospitalised, with 56 critical, and the death tally at 1,388. Twenty five per cent of deaths from COVID-19 in this country have occurred in just two months, and hospitalizations have more than quadrupled over this time.

But our leadership still insists they did nothing wrong. Desmond McKenzie said, “The Government is not sorry, because we did nothing wrong. We listened and we took decisions based on consultations.” But who did they consult? If I were a gambling man, I would bet an entire year’s salary that they did not get their instructions from the Ministry of Health and Wellness, because none of my colleagues there who I spoke with (and I communicated with several) agreed with the move. Perplexingly, Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange, minister of culture, gender, entertainment and sport, stated, “The spike started before the industry was open,” a statement which is self-incriminating, because admitting that you are relaxing measures while cases are increasing is an admission of reckless and irresponsible leadership.

My favourite analogy I have heard relating to the management of COVID-19 is that it is “like building a plane while you are flying it”. It is true. This is something new. As we go along, we keep learning more. Mistakes and errors of judgement will be made. That is to be expected. But to stubbornly deny an obvious contribution to a crisis smacks of arrogance and is a barrier to respect and confidence.

Michael Abrahams is an obstetrician and gynaecologist, social commentator, and human-rights advocate. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and michabe_1999@hotmail.com, or follow him on Twitter @mikeyabrahams.