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Hospital beds remain scarce as Indonesia rolls out vaccines
The country's health system is nearing full capacity, prompting calls for the government to strengthen health protocols alongside the nationwide vaccination rollout.
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President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo (center) receives the country's first COVID-19 vaccine jab on Wednesday. (The Jakarta Post/Presidential Palace)
P
resident Joko "Jokowi" Widodo received on Wednesday the first shot of a Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccine, marking the start of Indonesia's vaccination campaign.
However, the country still faces a more dangerous and imminent threat: its hospitals are getting full.
The government's hopes are high that the vaccine, which was approved for emergency use on Monday and aims to gradually reach some 181 million Indonesians, could help suppress the severity of COVID-19 symptoms and thus prevent a surge in hospitalizations.
Unfortunately, this problem is already a reality in many regions across the country, as incoming patients, including those who suffer from other diseases, face difficulties in securing even a regular hospital bed.
With over 600 medical-worker deaths from the virus recorded, according to Lawan COVID-19 (Fight COVID-19) volunteers, calls have intensified for the government to fix the problem in front of it rather than solely relying on the time-consuming vaccine roll-out.
As of Wednesday, the nation logged a record-breaking 11,278 new daily confirmed cases and 306 deaths, although the scale of the crisis could be much bigger.
Read also: Indonesia's latest official COVID-19 figures
