BY James Kon

Brunei continued to see a slight increase in COVID-19 cases with an average daily rate of cases at 611 cases per day last week as compared to 554 cases per day in the previous week.

A total of 48,491 antigen rapid test (ART) results were uploaded to the BruHealth app within one week of which 8.7 per cent were positive results.

These were revealed by Minister of Health Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Isham bin Haji Jaafar in the weekly press conference on the COVID-19 situation in the Sultanate on Monday.

Meanwhile, 612 new cases were reported on Monday, 608 cases of which were ART results and four from 143 RT-PCR laboratory tests carried out in the past 24 hours.

There were no cases in Category 5 requiring treatment in the intensive care unit whereas one case is in Category 4 requiring respiratory assistance and close monitoring.

As of November 13, the minister said, “The rate of vaccination coverage of COVID-19 in the country remained at a high level, with 78.8 per cent having received three doses of COVID-19 vaccine and 11.1 per cent with four doses.”

Meanwhile, Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Isham said that the number of influenza cases and influenza-like infections (ILI) in the past week has decreased but the infection rate is still above the normal level.

The minister advised the public to remain vigilant and take preventive measures, such as self-isolation when experiencing signs of infection and avoid crowded places.

The minister also advised seeing a doctor immediately if symptoms persist or worsen.

The public should also get the influenza vaccine, especially for those over the age of 60 or have pre-existing health conditions, he added.

-- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin