GEORGE TOWN – Although Penang remains at the top in terms of Covid-19 deaths per 100,000 population, Steven Sim said this should not be taken at face value, and that the state’s total fatalities are on a downtrend.
“Deaths per population is a ratio rather than an absolute number. What it means is, Penang has more people who died of Covid-19 out of every 100,000 people compared with other states,” said the state-federal coronavirus coordinator.
“However, it does not mean that Penang has more people who died of Covid-19 (overall) compared with other states.
“To illustrate, Johor (total deaths at 3,271 as of September 29), which ranks No. 2 on the deaths-per-population list, has more than double Penang’s cumulative deaths (1,345). Sabah ranks No. 3 with 2,201 deaths.”
As at 11.59pm yesterday, Penang saw a rate of 13.7 deaths per 100,000 population, followed by Johor (9.0), Perlis (6.7) and Sabah (6.5).
“Secondly, like our total cases, Penang’s daily deaths have been on a downtrend for two consecutive weeks. In the first week (epidemiological week, or EW, 37), Penang saw a decline of 1.57% in total deaths, and another 24.4% in the week after (EW 38),” Sim told The Vibes.
He credited the downtrend to aggressive actions based on data and science through a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach in the past fortnight.
One of the key reasons for the reduced fatalities is the increase in healthcare capacity that includes a 100-bed field hospital set up in 10 days and another 132 Covid-19 beds at various government healthcare facilities, including Penang and Bukit Mertajam Hospitals.
Sim extended his appreciation to private healthcare operators in the state that have taken in non-coronavirus patients – 300 in EW 37 and 136 in EW 28 – creating more space and freeing up resources at government hospitals to deal with Covid-19.
“We have since witnessed a 23.5% drop in average daily cases after the first week (EW 37, from September 12 to 18) and a 20.5% reduction in the following week (EW 38, from September 19 to 25).
“The good news is, our positivity rate has also reduced substantially, from almost hitting 20% on September 11, to 10% on September 23, and then, 7.6% on September 27.”
The positivity rate refers to the ratio of infections to the number of tests conducted. The World Health Organisation has recommended a positivity rate of 5% for adequate testing done.
Penang yesterday recorded another 763 Covid-19 cases and 21 fatalities. Three of the victims were brought in dead. – The Vibes, October 1, 2021
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