Ammon News -

Minister of Health Firas Hawari said Saturday the epidemiological situation in Jordan remains stable despite fluctuations in the numbers of infections with and deaths from the coronavirus, noting that vaccinations helped the Kingdom avoid a third wave of the pandemic.

Hawari attributed the stability to the measures the government had taken ahead of the gradual reopening of sectors, the return of expatriates and the arrival of some tourist groups, stressing that the stepped up vaccination campaigns had the biggest impact in curbing the spread of the virus and sparing the Kingdom from a new wave.

"The Kingdom achieved good vaccination percentages and set a model in the management of the vaccination process, having secured four types of vaccines and made them available to everyone according to the global protocols in place and without appointments, in addition to expanding the vaccination campaign to include pregnant, lactating mothers and children after including inmates in correctional and rehabilitation centers and the refugees," Hawari told Petra journalists.

Jordan has crossed the 6-million vaccination threshold, including those who got the first and second doses, Hawari said, urging more vaccinations "as the only way to raise immunity, maintain epidemiological stability and prevent it from spreading to alarming and unacceptable levels, and assuring that vaccines are available and continue to arrive to the Kingdom in shipments.

He also said the ministry's anti-Covid strategy is focused on improving the level of health care in field hospitals and raising their absorptive capacity by 500 more beds, after restructuring the oxygen supply systems to accommodate any sudden increase in infection figures.

Commenting on the ministry’s plan to address medical personnel staffing shortages in hospitals, including specialist doctors and qualified cadres, Hawari pointed to "an ambitious" training programme underway, which envisages initially linking Jordanian specialist medical doctors in Al-Bashir hospitals with their peers who work in renowned hospitals outside the Kingdom, mainly in the United States, for training in the various medical specialties.

He also said that a full return to in-person learning was a top ministry goal "to enter into a safe summer", adding that a plan in this regard was drawn up in coordination with the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research and other national institutions.

The minister noted the high percentages of vaccinations among education cadres, which reached 85 per cent in schools and 90 per cent in universities, adding that the ministry had put in place a plan to monitor the epidemiological situation after the return to in-class learning.