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Researchers from the World Health Organization (WHO) have said that COVID-19 will likely become endemic, meaning that it will always be present in the population to some degree. Dr. Mike Ryan, director of the WHO Emergencies program, issued a stern warning when he described the pandemic as “very serious” while anticipating worst-case scenarios in the future.
Dr. Ryan described the planet as “fragile” and said “we have to act together” after this “wake-up call.”
On Tuesday, he said at the organization’s final press conference for 2020: “I will say one thing that may surprise people.
“This pandemic has been very serious. It has spread throughout the world extremely rapidly and has affected every corner of this planet.
But this is not necessarily the biggest.
“This virus is very transmissible; it kills people and has deprived so many of their loved ones.
But their current case fatalities are reasonably low compared to other emerging diseases.
“This is a wake-up call.”
Professor David Heymann, chairman of the WHO strategic and technical advisory group for infectious hazards, said that “it appears to be the fate of SARS-CoV-2 [COVID-19] it is to become endemic. “
As of Tuesday, 81.9 million COVID-19 cases had been confirmed worldwide, with 1.79 million deaths.
In the UK, the total number of daily cases exceeded 50,000 for the first time, with 53,135 confirmed, leaving hospitals in London, the South East and the East of England on the brink.
READ MORE: Coronavirus patients could be treated at TENTS as UK infections rise
Great pressure has been put on UK hospitals, with ambulances lining up in front of the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel and the Queen’s Hospital in Romford, both in East London.
A junior doctor working in London said his hospital was “aggressively overloaded” by coronavirus patients.
Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s Covid-19 Technical Lead, also described the pandemic as a “wake-up call.”
She said in the online briefing: “You have heard everyone here say that these mutations will continue to occur.
“We need even more determination.
“I know everyone is tired. I know we are all sick of this and we want this to end.
“The vaccines are online. This is an incredibly powerful tool.
“We cannot lose this battle now.”
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