The novel coronavirus pandemic is still on the rise globally, which is why countries should continue applying special measures to combat the spread of the disease, the World Health Organization (WHO) Representative in Russia Melita Vujnovic said in an interview on Friday, APA reports citing TASS.
She noted that the second wave of the pandemic is not inevitable, "because the epidemic will develop depending on the people." "What’s important here is to manage new cases (even if their number drops), and to make sure people understand and accept the measures taken, that they are ready to adapt their behavior to this new reality," Vujnovic stated.
"The way such measures are implemented will show whether there will be a second wave or any subsequent waves or not," Vujnovic concluded.
On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. According to the latest statistics, over 6,714,300 people have been infected worldwide and more than 393,400 deaths have been reported. In addition, so far, over 3,261,200 individuals have recovered from the illness across the globe.
To date, a total of 449,834 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 212,680 patients having recovered from the disease. Russia’s latest data indicates 5,528 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.