According to the World Health Organization, those who have recovered from Covid-19 are three to five times more likely to re-infect with the Omicron version than those who have recovered from Delta (WHO).
According to Hans Henri P Kluge, the WHO’s Regional Director for Europe, Omicron variant can evade previous immunity in people. “So it can still infect those who have had Covid-19 in the past, those who are unvaccinated, and those who were vaccinated many months ago,” Kluge said in a recent note. “There are three things that we need to do urgently: protect ourselves through vaccination, prevent further infections, and prepare health systems for a surge in cases”.
Kluge said that health authorities must strengthen capacity, increase testing and trace capacities, engage primary health care in case management, prepare hospitals for a surge, and support health and frontline workers. “Two years in, our health worers are being severely tested once again. It is deeply worrying that one in 5 is suffering from anxiety and depression from the pandemic. Their concerns must be addressed and their need for manageable working conditions supported,” the WHO executive had stressed. Europe witnessed Covid cases cross 1 million for the first time this week. Europe has recorded over 100 million Covid cases, more than a third of all infections worldwide, since the start of the pandemic.
