Jakarta's Covid-19 Cases Rise, Majority Don't Need Hospitalization

According to Ngabila Salama, Head of Surveillance and Immunization at the DKI Jakarta Health Office, Covid-19 cases in the capital city increased in early December 2023.

"In the last week, from November 27th to December 3rd, the number of positive Covid-19 cases increased by 30 to 40 percent compared to the previous week," said Ngabila, as reported by *Detik.com* on Wednesday (6/11/2023).

Ngabila did not specify the exact number of new cases. The DKI Jakarta Provincial Government's Covid-19 monitoring website has also not updated its data since April 2023.

Ngabila only mentioned that 95% of new Covid-19 patients experienced mild or asymptomatic symptoms. Therefore, the number of Covid-19 patients hospitalized did not increase significantly.

Based on data from the DKI Jakarta Health Office's Surveillance and Immunization Section website, only 27 Covid-19 patients were hospitalized during the period of December 1-6, 2023.

This figure includes all Covid-19 inpatients in hospitals in South, West, East, North, Central Jakarta, and the Thousand Islands.

Covid-19 hospitalizations in the capital city had previously surged in April-May 2023, as shown in the graph.

However, according to Ngabila, this increase is still considered normal.

"The pattern (of Covid-19 cases) is that it increases every six months, like ISPA and pneumonia, due to seasonal changes," said Ngabila.

"People's immunity tends to decrease due to fatigue, stress, lack of sleep, poor diet, and high humidity, making it easier for germs to enter the human body," Ngabila explained.

She urged the public to continue practicing clean and healthy living habits, to wear masks when traveling if sick, and to frequently wash their hands with soap and running water.