Alcohol abuse strains healthcare system in S. Africa's COVID-19 epicenter

Source: Xinhua| 2020-06-10 10:20:34|Editor: huaxia

CAPE TOWN, June 10 (Xinhua) -- Alcohol abuse is straining the healthcare system in the Western Cape province, South Africa's epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak, which is already under pressure due to the virus, authorities warned on Tuesday.

A number of hospitals in the province have seen a significant spike in trauma cases linked to alcohol abuse since the government lifted a ban on alcohol on June 1, Western Cape Governor Allan Winde said.

"This is extremely concerning to us as the healthcare system is already under pressure as a result of COVID-19," Winde added.

As of Tuesday, the province had reported 34,819 confirmed cases and 890 deaths, in comparison with 52,991 cases and 1,162 deaths nationwide.

As part of a hard lockdown, the ban on alcohol had been enforced to curb the spread of COVID-19 since March 27, but the government lifted the ban on June 1 with a further easing of some lockdown restrictions.

The country's long-standing alcohol abuse problem reemerged a day after the ban was lifted, leading to an increase in trauma cases and domestic violence.

There have been calls for reinstating the ban, as some hospitals are complaining that their attention has been shifted from treating COVID-19 patients to dealing with trauma cases linked to alcohol abuse.

However, Winde said the Western Cape has not received any indication of reinstating the ban from the national government.

"Alcohol abuse is taking away hospital beds and care from people who need them during this very serious pandemic," said Winde, urging people to drink responsibly. Enditem

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