The fifth coronavirus resurgence has again turned the focus of the conversation to restrictions on the public, lockdowns, and the potential collapse of the healthcare system.
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Once again, we and hear projections about thousands of severely ill Israelis, millions infected and the looming paralysis of public life. The Israeli public is waiting for the responsible professional to balance out this bleak picture, as hard as it may be.
Striking balance in hard. It seems much easier to predict a catastrophe. If the worst does not play itself out it's because we have succeeded to keep the pandemic at bay, so what's a little anxiety? This is not the way to gain the public's trust.
It has to be said that Israel is perhaps as ready as it can be to deal with the fifth COVID-19 wave. We are probably the most COVID-vaccinated country in the world, with 4.5 million Israelis also receiving the third booster about four months ago. Our healthcare system is strong and well adapted to the situation on the ground, and the Health Ministry has among its decision-makers several professional, experienced, responsible epidemiologists, whom the public trusts.
This is a time to project confidence and steadfastness – not anxiety and apprehension.
The current resurgence requires us to focus on proper medical management while focusing on the continuation of as normal a daily routine as possible, across the board. This is a time to ensure all civil systems are literally running as best they can in the economy, including trade, commerce, education, culture, and yes tourism.
Conditions are in our favor to make that happen, as long as we also stay focused on the healthcare system, push the need for vaccinations, and adapt testing and quarantine policies.
So far, the fifth wave in Israel has been true to how the Omicron strain has presented elsewhere: very contagious but less violent. In other words, four times more contagious, and about only a quarter as violent as the Delta strain.
Yes, the number of patients hospitalized will increase, perhaps even surpass the previous record but our hospitals and medical teams have already proven their strength in times of crisis.
The issue will be the number of active cases in the communities, which requires we support HMOs, which are likely facing double the caseload as in the previous COVID-19 wave.
Proper readiness will prevent chaos and angst. We should be grateful for our medical teams and cherish every doctor, nurse, and staffer. They will help us keep the pandemic at bay, this time, as well.
The timing of the fifth wave and the increase in Omicron and Delta infections presenting in patients who have been fully vaccinated, including with booster shots, stem in part from the familiar phenomenon of the decline in the effectiveness of immune protection.
This made Israel's unprecedented decision to add the fourth shot the right decision – critical, even, to our chances to weather the storm.
I urge the public not to be swayed by headlines citing superficial studies, rather stick to the Health Ministry's official recommendations, which are based on the medical and scientific knowledge we have gained so far, including that the efficiency of the vaccination wanes with time.
Five months ago, Israel led the way by ordering the second booster. It helped us roll back the fourth wave of the coronavirus. This is why anyone who is eligible for a vaccine must get it. The vaccines are safe, they protect us, and they will allow us to get through this resurgence as well.
One thing has not changed since the onset of the pandemic is that the ability to manage and contain the outbreak runs through tracing those infected. Israel has built one of the most extensive testing capabilities in the world and we cannot relent on them. The mechanism allowing for 200,000 daily PCR tests and hundreds of thousands of antigen tests must be fully utilized and even pushed to grow.
The change in PCR testing policies cannot result in empty stations. Partial information and fostering an air of indifference – there are already enough incentives to claim ignorance in the name of maintaining the daily routine – will not work in our favor. PCR and antigen testing have to carry on, wherever possible and necessary.
The continuation of the civilian systems' competency is highly dependent on maintaining the guidelines with respect to quarantine, exposure, and recovery time for patients in mild conditions. Adapting these policies to the characteristics of the current wave, in which most cases are mild, is critical.
There is also no need to be wary of opening the skies to tourism. Omicron is already here and it does not discriminate between countries or patients.
The tourism industry must again become a priority, not only because the risk is low but because a dynamic economy cannot shutter its skies for long.
If we have yet to adapt to living with the coronavirus, the Omicron should be seen is something of a "coach" variant that will make us do so.
Israel, for its part, must continue to show strength, leadership, and innovation, and public and medical resilience – not anxiety or panic. The public deserves steps the inspire confidence and are geared toward continuing life as we know it.
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