The Western Cape is decommissioning the Mitchells Plain Hospital of Hope, one of the province's dedicated COVID-19 field hospitals.
This comes as the province officially exited the COVID-19 fourth wave and new cases have now dropped below 600 based on a seven-day moving average, the province said.
The Western Cape’s statistics show that the seven-day-moving average is now 588.
“The decrease in deaths and hospital admissions recorded during the fourth wave, coupled with the increased rates of protection among residents shows us that the virus is reaching an endemic stage.”
According to Western Cape Premier Alan Winde, the province is currently seeing an average of 18 deaths per day from 31 based on a seven-day moving average last week.
In addition, Winde said despite there being many cases compared to the third wave, there was significantly less pressure on the healthcare platform.
“We are seeing a continued decrease in new COVID-19 cases, hospital admissions and COVID-19 test positivity, showing us that we have exited the fourth wave. The South African COVID-19 Modelling Consortium (SACMC) prediction that we will see fewer cases for next week further supports this.”
Meanwhile, new admissions are dropping to 98 admissions per day from 174 last week.
In addition, the Premier said the Mitchells Plain Hospital of Hope has zero patients.
However, should it be necessary, the province said it would bring additional infrastructure online to ensure the healthcare system is fully capacitated and ensure an “agile” response.
“We need to focus our attention on ending the second pandemic of joblessness that continues in our country.”
The Premier has once again called on the elderly from the age of 50 and living with comorbidities to ensure that they vaccinate.
According to the data, 899 170 people or 63.89% over the age of 50 are already fully jabbed.
“While I am pleased to note that 63.89% of the 1 407 309 of those over 50 years are already fully vaccinated, I strongly encourage those of you who are 50 years and older, or who are over 18 years and who have comorbidity or are otherwise immunocompromised to please ensure that your vaccinations are up to date.”
By 27 January 2022, 2 402 064 or 48.26% of the adult population in the province had been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in the Western Cape.
“I want to sincerely thank all of our healthcare workers and those who work at our healthcare facilities for serving on the frontline throughout the pandemic, seeing us through yet another wave. We are truly indebted to you.” – SAnews.gov.za
