Manning explains challenges

By MIRIAM ZARRIGA
PANDEMIC Response Controller David Manning says the fight against the Coronavirus (Covid-19) has thus far showed that the country’s health system has limited capacity to cope with widespread community transmission.
“There are not enough health workers, insufficient hospital beds and very limited intensive care facilities,” he said, adding that the Government also needed to seriously raise the doctor-to-patient ratio in the country.
Manning said the disparity capabilities of the provinces and their ability to coordinate effectively, the traditional and cultural perceptions by citizens in rural communities, compounded with illiteracy and lack of awareness had created additional challenges for compliance to testing and isolation.
“The stigma associated with public perception towards the first pronounced cases and how those were linked to drastic measures undertaken by the Government during the earliest phases of the response created a countrywide personal reservation towards the need for medical attention, as such created challenges for the medical front liners nationwide,” he said.
“Low rate of negative returning results, fast rate of recoveries has also created anxiety amongst society on the seriousness of the issue.
“The social and economic impact of the pandemic will further put vulnerable populations at risk of secondary emergencies (vaccine-preventable diseases, food security, poor economic and governance processes).
“Vaccination is the key to help Papua New Guinea out of the current pandemic.
“This is a similar strategy in all other countries.”
Manning, who is the Police Commissioner, said the country’s law and order enforcement capacity must also be improved to address the challenges, including managing any emergencies, including health.
“Immigrations laws and regulations will need more enforcement in order to instil compliance; PNG’s labour laws and policy frameworks needs to be improved so that jobs that can be done in PNG should not be externally put up for foreign labour,” he said.
“Compliance is a main challenge not only in health, but in other areas where the Covid-19 operations overlapped.”