Professor Warns of Another Covid-19 Wave, Encourages South Africans to Vaccinate

• Virologist Professor Barry Schoub has cautioned South African citizens that the Covid-19 pandemic is not over
• He said another wave of the virus is looming and urged South Africans to take the vaccine, which under 40% of the population received
• Schoub believes that another wave of the Covid-19 virus will occur at the end of September or in October

JOHANNESBURG - A virologist has warned that the Covid-19 pandemic is not over. This comes after the World Health Organization announced that one million people throughout the world died from the virus in 2022.

Virologist Professor Barry Schoub believes that another wave of Covid-19 is imminent and has urged South Africans to take the vaccine to be safe. During an interview with eNCA, he said the low vaccine rate is concerning.

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“In South Africa, at the moment we are fortunately at a pretty low but stable level we’re having something like about 200 cases reported daily which is far lower than what we had when we were in the midst of our peaks,” he said.

Schoub said the low vaccine intake is concerning as the country is not out of the woods yet. He said it is important for South Africans to know that the Covid-19 vaccine is safe and important for protection.

The professor believes that it would be useful to report accurate figures of daily rates as it will impart information and alert the country to take precautions. Schoub said the reported number of cases are an underestimate as more people use home testing kits.

He predicts that another wave of the virus will occur at the end of September or October. Schoub said it is wise to wear a mask in crowded indoor spaces.

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Meanwhile, according to JacarandaFM, under 40% of South Africans have been fully vaccinated despite the country being one of the hardest hit in Africa.

Unvaccinated Covid19 patients make up the bulk of hospitalisations

In a related matter, Briefly News also reported Health Minister Joe Phaahla has revealed that the majority of patients who are hospitalised with Covid19 are unvaccinated. He urged South Africans to get the jab; over 30 million vaccines have been administered.

The vaccine offers protection from serious symptoms that normally result in hospitalisation and can in some cases lead to death according to EWN.

The latest number of infections shows an impressive recovery rate of 96% with 221 new deaths and 2 782 new cases of the virus.

Source: Briefly News