Lately, the news of rising Covid-19 cases is starting to worry most of Jakartan. It coincides with the arrival of the Omicron variant that entered Indonesia last December, which sent the nation into the third wave of the global pandemic. Therefore, Smartcitizen need to be aware of the development of Covid-19 cases in the nation's capital, Jakarta. Here, we will analyze the trend of Covid-19 cases during the first week of 2022 with the most recent week. This to highlight how fast the Omicron variant spread in the capital.
Covid-19 Cases in Jakarta
source: DKI Jakarta
If you look at the number of positive cases of Covid-19 recently, you might notice how it rises almost every week. In the period 31 January-6 February, there were 80,300 positive cases in Jakarta. When compared to the beginning of the year, during the period of 10-16 January, there were ‘only’ 3,760 positive cases. This shows there is a significant jump in positive cases in Jakarta of more than 75,000 cases. As stated by the Head of Disease Prevention and Control of DKI Jakarta Health Agency, this increase occurred due to the condition of active cases coupled with the spread of the Omicron variant which is easily transmitted.
Fortunately, among the sea of new positive cases, the rate of recovered patients is still greater than the death rate. This can be seen from the chart of The Trend of Recovery Rate, Mortality Rate, and Positivity Rate Weekly in Jakarta. In the past week (January 31-February 6), the recovery rate was 95.4% and the mortality rate was 1.4%. Although the recovery rate is greater, we also need to remain vigilant. Especially with how the positivity rate (the ratio of the number of Covid-19 cases with the number of people tested) increased significantly. In the period 10-16 January, where the positivity rate in Jakarta was 3.5%. Then towards the end of January, the positivity rate increased to 22.63%, exceeding WHO safe limit of less than 5%.
Well, as an early detection step, testing and tracing efforts are also carried out by the Provincial Government of Jakarta. When looking at cases in Jakarta, the number of people tested for PCR in the period 10-16 January was as many as 107,569 people, while at the early of February (January 31-February 6) as many as 354,916 people. Looking at the comparison at the beginning of the year and the end of January showed an increase in the number of tests conducted in Jakarta.
Now, let’s back to the discussion of Covid-19 cases, and also how impactful the Omicron variant is and how is the condition of health facilities in Jakarta? Well, the answer can be found in the proportion of Covid-19 cases in Jakarta and also the availability of beds.
Proportion of Covid-19 Cases in Jakarta
Source: @dkijakarta
The arrival of the Omicron variant has a significant impact on the increase in Covid-19 cases in Jakarta. This can be seen in the cumulative Omicron cases from foreign travelers (PPLN) or communities (Non-PPLN). In the january 6, 2022 data, there were 239 total Omicron cases from PPLN and 12 non-PPLN cases. But, on February 6, there were 1,696 cases of Omicron from PPLN and 1,331 cases from Non-PPLN. The data shows there is an increase of more than 1,300 cases of Omicron Total from both PPLN and Non-PPLN.
When viewed closely in the bar chart, Omicron's case was initially larger than that of the community. However, by the end of January, the total number of Omicron cases from the community had increased dramatically from just 12 cases to 1,331. Similarly, daily positive cases and active positive cases, which initially showed higher numbers in PPLN cases, are now dwarfed by the number of cases from community transmissions.
The number of Omicron cases adds to the list of active Covid-19 positive cases. This caused Covid-19 cases in Jakarta last week to increase significantly when compared to Covid-19 cases in early January.
Daily Isolation and ICU Bed Occupancy Rate in Jakarta
source: @dkijakarta
Then, what about the condition of health facilities now since the increase in Covid-19 cases? Well, looking at the infographic on the availability of beds for isolation and intensive care (ICU) in 140 hospitals that treat Covid-19 patients, there was a percentage of increase in utilisation from early January to the end of January, which was marked by a straight-up graph. As of February 6, 2022, the percentage of bed utilisation for daily isolation was 62% and the percentage of bed utilisation in ICU treating Covid-19 patients was 34%. That's a sign that while the number of bed availability is still enough to treat Covid-19 cases, but by seeing a rise in positive cases, of course we need to be vigilant so that we could avoid a surge in cases that makes health facilities overwhelmed again.
In essence, from the explanation related to the trend of Covid-19 cases that soared in the early of February, we should be more vigilant with the spread of Covid-19, let alone the Omicron variant that also complicated the current situation. Therefore, as a preventive measure other than testing, do not forget to adhere to the health protocols (maintain distance, wash hands, avoid eating together, stay away from crowds, use masks, and reduce mobility). In addition, you can also see the development of Covid-19 cases or follow vaccinations by opening the Jakarta Covid-19 Response menu through the JAKI application. Download the JAKI app via Google Play Store or Apple Apps Store.
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