The Medical Association of Jamaica (MAJ) is calling on Prime Minister Andrew Holness to extend the weekend lockdowns, which he announced last month.

The final of three weekend lockdowns, imposed as part of the current COVID-19 restrictions ended yesterday (April 12). As the nation wait to find out this week if Prime Minister Holness will extend the weekend lockdowns, the MAJ is making out a case for an extension.

The MAJ is the organization representing the island’s registered medical doctors. MAJ President, Dr Andrew Manning is declaring that the current COVID-19 measures, including the lockdowns, need to be expended to ease the pressure hospitals are currently facing.

Last week, Prime Minister Holness warned that if the weekend lockdown was not successful in bringing down the numbers, even stricter restrictions would be announced. Speaking on a current affairs programme yesterday, Dr Manning argued that, “because of where we are in terms of the hospital numbers, we simply cannot afford to have the numbers of new cases go up again.”

Jamaican hospitals under pressure

According to the MAJ President, “We recognize that there is a balancing act but at this point in time, I think we need to continue these measures because the hospitals still are under pressure.”

Last month, Health and Wellness Minister, Dr Christopher Tufton reported that thirteen hospitals, including Kingston Public and the University Hospital, had exceeded 100 per cent of their COVID-19 isolation capacity.

The Minister stated that this was the clearest indicator of the healthcare system being overwhelmed. Voicing his agreement, Dr Manning said the rate of hospitalisation is still at an unsatisfactory level, “because of the limited number of beds that we have available.”

The MAJ President has also urged the government to implement a system that will allow residents to access food and other necessities before the lockdowns, without having to gather in crowds.

“I think we need to continue with the measures. But I think we need to find a way, so that at the start of the lockdowns, persons are able to get basic supplies without having to form crowds,” Dr Manning pointed out.

Stricter measures helped decrease COVID-19 numbers

Chief Medical Officer, Dr Jacquiline Bisasor McKenzie has reported that the stricter measures have helped to decrease the daily COVID-19 numbers.  She stated that the data on new cases suggest that there is a plateauing in the number of new infections.