COVID-19: Mass lockdown vs. Mass testing

In December 2019, Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel Coronavirus, evolved in Wuhan, China. Since then, China has taken unprecedented measures in response to the outbreak, including extended school and workplace lockdown.

Up to March 31, 2020, China adopted the tolerance level of the Corona crisis, new death counts to 3,305. According to total death number top ten countries includes Italy, Spain, USA, France, China, Iran, UK, Netherland, Germany, and Belgium (Source Worldometer-31.03.2020). The sad part is the number of deaths is increasing every minute.

Reviewing country's adoption strategy on COVID 19, for example, China, Italy, Spain emphasis on mass lockdown and side by side go for mass testing to break the infection where USA, Germany acclimate with mass testing policy regardless of mass lockdown strategy to keep active their economy. 

As like India, most close to china boarder, Bangladesh imposes total lockdown over COVID-19 relaxing the necessity services active.

As a developing country, the Bangladeshi citizens are among the world's most vulnerable to the unchecked spread of this disease, for that reason the country's government is facing big challenge to work on mass testing all over the country with limited resource to project unattainable social safety net program to lockdown sufferer.

According to population density, Bangladesh is considered first position in the world which makes the lockdown really challenging for government. As things go Bangladesh government focus on real lockdown to slowdown the spread of COVID 19 pandemic and armed forces along with police force are employed on field operation to strict execution of lockdown outcomes.

Though lockdown measures are primary steps against coronavirus spread where large scale testing is supporting the lockdown outcomes. To know the number of people who are infected by COVID-19 it is more crucial then to depend on small-scale testing with blind lockdown policy only.

The USA and Germany still focus on breaking the infection Chain through mass testing to keep active their economy and its crucial and greedy intention of COVID 19 fight expert says.

Large-scale testing is reasoning with countries resource availability with economic strength, and mass lockdown is sensing as a survival strategy with a scarce resource with an unfocused economic potential loss. The German government is presently considering push strategies to slap on coronavirus testing, looking to South Korea as a role model.

Germany is already executed more COVID 19 tests than any other European country at a rate of 3 lakhs to 5 lakhs a week, according to officials. Expert says about Germany the actual estimation of people who've contracted the virus but have not been tested, or do not know that they have it, is much bigger than the confirmed cases. But Germany does not focus on purely lockdown decisions; moreover, they concentrate on mass testing as a push strategy.

They believe that the young infected age group is more COVID-19 spread escalator compares to old infected people. Their proposed plan echoes the "trace, test, and treat" strategy that appears to have helped South Korea bring its outbreak under control.

It has included mass screening for potential cases and heavy use of technology to monitor patients. A crucial weapon in the battle would be the use of smartphone location data to trace the patient's recent movements, to more accurately track down and isolate potentially infected people.

So, Germany more emphasis on forceful testing and the testing is supported by high technology aid as smartphone tracking. Their accent on the economy with controls of COVUD-19. It's a rapacious step of Germany against coronavirus fight with a growing economy. The USA also follows this greedy gait towards the COVID-19 crisis facing total death 3773 out of 1, 85,159 total cases (source: Worldometer, 31.03.2020).

As a high-density country of Bangladesh, an exact lockdown strategy is taken by the government all over the country many experts appreciate it, and they also recommend to the government that Bangladesh needs to the side by side focus on mass testing for COVID 19 fight more sustainable.

All in all, as developed countries like the USA, Germany is well equipped to challenge the coronavirus crisis, above mass testing, is more reasonable in some cases regardless of only focusing on real lockdown. But for developing countries lack of resources this economy focus greedy only mass testing steps is suicidal just now.

Different observation shows that from Worldometer COVID -19 incubation periods is about to 2-14 days long and pandemic pick is estimated about two weeks or three weeks to sustain in a country for examples Italy first case is reported as 31 January 2020 and epidemic starts in Italy middle of March 2020 to April first declining rate.

In Bangladesh the first three known cases were reported by Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) on 7 March 2020 and lockdown is executed by government on March 26, 2020.

It can be assumed that according to incubation period of COVID-19 and epidemic in Bangladesh near about April middle to May first week. This is why Bangladesh should continue to maintain and ensure hard lockdown policy with penetration of mass testing side by side all over the country.

The writer is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at Comilla
University, Bangladesh.

Email: [email protected]