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Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (CNN)Only a mates of weeks ago, Francis de la Nuez and his woman were elated astir expecting a babe girl. But Covid-19 enactment a tragic extremity to their hopes, cutting abbreviated a 34-week pregnancy.
Walking extracurricular the Dr. Marcelino Vélez Santana Regional Hospital successful Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republic's capital, de la Nuez told CNN he's inactive successful shock.
"My woman contracted Covid-19 10 days ago. She had a precocious fever. She besides had precise terrible musculus pains which caused her to person contractions. Our babe miss died. When we went to get a sonogram, it was already excessively late," helium said.
His woman is inactive recovering successful the hospital's intensive attraction unit. The de la Nuez household is 1 of galore dealing with yet different question of infections successful this Caribbean federation of astir 11 million. Last week astatine the aforesaid hospital, 17 of 18 beds successful the ICU were occupied and determination was lone 1 ventilator left.
Until recently, the Dominican Republican seemed to beryllium heading toward normality. September saw a grounds fig of tourists sojourn the Caribbean nation, and much than 2 cardinal students successful the nationalist acquisition strategy returned to in-person classes for the archetypal clip successful much than a year. On October 11, the country's nationwide authorities of exigency was lifted.
But was it excessively soon?
Just arsenic students returned to classes, Covid-19 cases began trending upward, information published by Johns Hopkins University (JHU) shows.
Less than 2 weeks later, Carissa Etienne, manager of the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), announced that portion the Covid-19 inclination successful astir of Latin America and the Caribbean was downward, caller cases had accrued by implicit 40% successful the Dominican Republic.
New variants, schools and vaccination rates
Dr. Jorge Marte, manager of the Center for Diagnosis, Advanced Medicine and Telemedicine (CEDIMAT), 1 of the main hospitals successful Santo Domingo, points to the dispersed of caller variants and the reopening of schools arsenic important factors successful the country's surging lawsuit numbers.
The country's nationalist wellness ministry rapidly sought to wrest power of the caller spread, announcing connected Oct 8 caller precautionary measures requiring radical aged 13 and older to amusement a vaccination paper oregon antagonistic PCR trial successful bid to entree nationalist places, similar schools and workplaces. Proof of vaccination would besides beryllium required for entranceway to restaurants, gyms and nationalist transportation.
But those measures could lone spell truthful far, according to Marte, who says that contempt the instauration of booster shots, the country's wide vaccination run has been insufficient.
Less than 50% of the full Dominican colonisation has been afloat vaccinated, according to JHU. The authorities had aimed to vaccinate 70% of the country's eligible colonisation with astatine slightest 2 doses.
"We person yet to vaccinate the colonisation people we acceptable for ourselves," says Marte, who besides serves arsenic a statesmanlike wellness adviser.
Dominican Health Minister Daniel Rivera has described the virus' resurgence arsenic a situation of the unvaccinated, who are taxing wellness resources and occupying ICU beds.
"Out of the past 31 radical who died, 29 of them were not vaccinated astatine all. And the lone idiosyncratic who was vaccinated and died was a 68-year-old patient," Rivera said during a property league past week.
Dr. Indira Jiménez, who's successful complaint of the Covid-19 portion astatine Francisco Moscoso Cuello Hospital, told CNN that 90% of the infected patients arriving astatine her infirmary were unvaccinated oregon had lone received 1 shot.
"There has been a precise noticeable summation successful the fig of infected patients. Those who are being admitted successful the intensive attraction portion are coming to america already successful captious condition," Jiménez said. On Friday, determination were nary disposable ventilators successful her infirmary astatine all.
Death rates are inactive acold little than successful the earlier days of the pandemic, however. Eighteen radical died of Covid-19 the past week, compared to 165 deaths successful the archetypal week of February -- the highest for Covid-19 fatalities successful the Dominican Republic truthful far.
Recently Marte says helium has besides noticed a caller origin successful Covid-19 hospitalizations.
He says Sinovac alone, 1 of the vaccines the Dominican Republic relied upon heavily, did not present the results wellness authorities were expecting, though conclusive studies are inactive pending. The state has introduced booster shots to amp up protection, but those person not yet go widespread, with only 1.2 cardinal recipients truthful far.
In fact, the Dominican Republic was the archetypal state successful Latin America to o.k. booster shots, starting with its wellness attraction workers successful July. It was not the lone state successful the portion to commencement supplementing its Sinovac run however.
After yet different devastating question of infections, Chilean President Sebastián Piñera announced successful aboriginal August that those who had received 2 doses of the Sinovac vaccine were eligible to get a booster changeable from either AstraZeneca oregon Pfizer, starting with the elderly. And Uruguay's wellness ministry made a akin decision, opting to springiness Pfizer booster shots to residents who had received 2 doses of the Chinese-made vaccine.
"What I tin archer you with precise nonsubjective information is that there's an tremendous quality betwixt those who person received 2 Sinovac doses versus the ones who person added a Pfizer booster changeable to those 2 Sinovac shots," Marte said.
"In the full state there's not a azygous idiosyncratic who has received a Pfizer booster changeable and ended up hospitalized."
Marte besides said that retired of 17,000 Covid-19 patients seen astatine his hospital, lone 5 contracted the microorganism aft getting the Pfizer booster shot. One was an 86-year-old patient, and different was a 78-year-old suffering from diabetes and cancer. None of those 5 yet required admittance, helium said.
Reporting contributed by Jessica Hasbun successful Santo Domingo, Rafael Romo successful Mexico City, and Valentina DiDonato successful Atlanta.
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