TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakartans are urged to exercise vigil over impacts of COVID-19 on public health by staying highly disciplined in practicing preventive measures called "4M", stated Indonesian Medical Association (IDI)-South Jakarta Chapter Head M. Yadi Permana.

The "4M" refers to the four preventive measures as mandated in the government's health protocols of wearing face masks, washing hands, maintaining physical distancing, and avoiding crowds, Permana was quoted as saying by ANTARA in Jakarta on Saturday.

South Jakarta has turned into a COVID-19 red zone, and the rising trend of new infection cases may occur if residents fail to remain strict and consistent in applying health protocols, he emphasized.

"Currently, several hospitals in South Jakarta are designated as COVID-19 referral hospitals," Permana noted.

The Jakarta provincial government revealed earlier that 14 hospitals in South Jakarta were designated as COVID-19 referral hospitals in the wake of mounting infection rates in the capital city.

To this end, all non-COVID-19 patients currently hospitalized at the designated hospitals would be transferred to other hospitals, Head of the South Jakarta Health Office Muhammad Helmy affirmed.

The non-referral hospitals were demanded to step up room capacity to accommodate patients from designated hospitals, he remarked.

Helmy noted that four of the 14 designated hospitals -- the Pasar Minggu, Jati Padang, Kebayoran Lama, and Kebayoran Baru public hospitals -- are owned by the South Jakarta city administration.

The 10 others -- Pondok Indah, MMC, Medistra, Siloam Mampang Prapatan, Mayapada, Prikasih, Andhika, Bhayangkara Sespimma Polri, DR Suyoto Pusrehah Kemhan, Pertamina, and Fatmawati hospitals -- belong to the private sector, military, police, state-owned company, and government agencies.

With these 14 designated hospitals, the capital city had 59 COVID-19 referral hospitals, he pointed out.

A worrisome trend has arisen in the past two weeks for Indonesia that has been battling to flatten its coronavirus curve since March 2020.

The country witnessed a spike in COVID-19 infection rates, with the addition of over three thousand new cases daily. Furthermore, over 100 frontline doctors have succumbed to the infection.

On September 3, 2020, for instance, 3,622 new cases were reported over a 24-hour period, while on September 8, Indonesia had recorded 3,046 fresh infections, thereby pushing the total tally of confirmed COVID-19 cases to 200,035.

In dealing with the soaring number of new confirmed cases, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan declared the re-enforcement of large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) that would come into effect from Sept 14, 2020, based on the emergency COVID-19 situation in the capital city.

Read also: Jakarta Must Conduct 40,000 Covid-19 Test Daily, Kadin's Erwin Aksa Says

ANTARA