COVID-19: Erbil launches awareness campaign as 771 new cases recorded in Kurdistan

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Region’s Ministry of Health on Saturday announced a new coronavirus awareness campaign as the autonomous region records nearly 800 new infections and 21 deaths over the previous 24 hours.

"Please pay attention and listen to the awareness campaign," said Health Minister Saman Barzinji at a press conference in the regional capital of Erbil, adding that the effort "is not the first of its kind, nor the last, and it is in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO)."

Barzinji explained, "The campaign includes distributing awareness leaflets with masks for citizens t o get used to wearing them when they leave the house to carry out their daily work."

"This campaign," he continued, "is to prevent infection, but at the same time, health instructions and procedures must be adhered to when one becomes infected. These include directions on how an infected person deals with people around them, steps for health isolation, and review of specialized centers for the treatment of the coronavirus."

"Those who contract it, as well as carriers of the virus, must present themselves to a doctor who specializes in this disease and to receive the necessary treatment according to the recommendations and protocols of the Ministry of Health."

Barzinji urged the public "to not listen to rumors, messages, and publications on social media that are not based on practical facts."

"One of the factors behind the increasing deaths and infections is patients' negligence and not going to the hospital in to, causing them to reach a stage that is difficult to treat by doctors."

According to Ministry of Health’s latest figures, the total number of patients who have so far contracted the coronavirus in the Kurdistan Region has reached 83,376. Over 2,600 of them have died.

Read More: COVID-19: Kurdistan’s Duhok province records highest new daily cases yet

The coronavirus has infected nearly 50 million people worldwide and killed over 1.2 million, according to Johns Hopkins University’s database. The actual figures could be dramatically higher due to insufficient testing capabilities or underreporting.  

Editing by John J. Catherine