With the spread of the Corona virus outbreak, not a few people are pressing the government and officials to implement lockdown. This step is considered effective to suppress the increasing number of positive cases of Corona. However, what exactly is meant by lockdown?
In dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak in the world and in Indonesia, some people assume that physical distancing alone is not enough to prevent the spread of the Corona virus. Through various media, not a few people are pushing the government to immediately implement lockdown.
What's that Lockdown?
Lockdown is a term used to describe an effort to control the spread of infection. Referring to President Joko Widodo's explanation, lockdown requires an area to completely block entry and exit.
Communities in the applicable area lockdown can no longer leave the house and gather, while all transportation and office, school, and worship activities will be disabled.
However, the definition of lockdown actually it is still not very clear and has not been agreed globally. Application lockdown in each country or region has a different way or protocol.
For example, in Wuhan, China, lockdown totally applied. As long as it applies lockdown, All residents in the city were barred from leaving their homes and all public areas, such as malls and markets, were closed.
While in Spain and Italy, the policy lockdown there they still allow residents to go out of their homes to shop for daily necessities and buy medicines.
is Lockdown Effectively Preventing the Spread of the Corona Virus?
On January 23, 2020, the Chinese government implemented the lockdown in 20 provinces. One of them is Hubei province with Wuhan as its capital. About 2 months after lockdown enforced, China's National Health Commission announced that there were no reports of new COVID-19 cases in the province.
The news shows that lockdown effective in suppressing the spread of the virus. However, if you look at the conditions in other countries that also apply lockdown, effectiveness lockdown still needs to be studied further.
For example, in Italy, which has implemented lockdown from March 9 to May 27, 2020 yesterday, the increase in cases still occurred. Based on the latest data, there are around 231.00 people infected with the corona virus and 32,955 of them died. This data makes Italy the country with the highest death rate from the Corona virus in the world.
Based on these data, it can be concluded that the effectiveness of lockdown in preventing the spread of the Corona virus and the COVID-19 pandemic is not yet known for certain.
What is the difference Lockdown, Regional Quarantine and Civil Emergency?
In Indonesia, the government does not use the term 'lockdown' as a measure to control the Corona virus outbreak. However, there is actually no significant difference between the terms 'lockdown', 'territorial quarantine', and 'civil emergency'.
In the case of the COVID-19 outbreak, all these measures were put in place in order to reduce the spread of the Corona virus. Here is the explanation:
Territory quarantine
According to Law Number 6 of 2018 concerning Health Quarantine, quarantine is defined as an effort to limit and/or separate someone who is exposed to an infectious disease.
Based on the scale, quarantine is divided into 4 types, namely home quarantine, hospital quarantine, regional quarantine, and large-scale social restrictions (PSBB).
As long as the regional quarantine is in effect, people living in the area are not allowed to leave their territory and people from outside the area are not allowed to enter the quarantined area.
The necessities of life for people and livestock in the quarantined area will be the responsibility of the government.
In order to prevent the spread of Corona Virus infection, the government also asks all levels of society to apply physical distancing, namely by not traveling outside the house, not gathering, and limiting a minimum distance of 1 meter when interacting with other people.
Civil emergency
According to Government Regulation in Lieu of Law (Perpu) Number 23 of 1959 concerning Dangerous Conditions, civil emergency is defined as a status when security or law and order in the entire territory or part of the territory of the Republic of Indonesia is threatened by rebellion, riots, or is affected by a disaster.
In this case, the option of imposing a civil emergency by the government is related to the COVID-19 outbreak due to the Corona virus.
Impact Lockdown for the Community
Logically, lockdown Indeed, it can reduce the spread of the Corona virus because it limits the mobility of the population and prevents people from gathering.
However, on the other hand, this policy also risks causing several impacts to the community, namely:
Psychological impact
With enactment lockdownPeople are at risk of experiencing fear, anxiety, and loneliness because they feel alienated from their social environment. These things can trigger mental health disorders.
According to some studies, any form of physical restriction can increase the risk of psychological problems, such as stress, anxiety, fear, and loneliness.
If this happens, people who experience these psychological problems can experience a decrease in their immune system, making them more susceptible to illness. Without proper treatment, stress or anxiety due to the condition lockdown it can also lead to more serious mental health problems, such as depression.
Economic impact
Policy lockdown It will also have a huge impact on the economy of the community and the country. Because they cannot leave their homes, many residents find it difficult to earn a living. This will certainly be more felt by people who cannot work from home.
Therefore, after considering the various positive and negative sides, the Indonesian government has not yet decided to choose a policy lockdown as an effort to prevent the spread of the Corona virus.
The policy currently implemented by the government is Large-Scale Social Restrictions (PSBB), in which only certain activities are restricted to suppress the spread of infection.
While complying with government policies in tackling the COVID-19 outbreak, you also still need to make efforts to prevent Corona virus infection by washing your hands regularly, avoiding crowded places and being close to other people, and eating balanced nutritious foods to keep your immune system strong.
If you experience symptoms of Corona virus infection, such as fever, cough, and shortness of breath, immediately self-isolate and contact hotline COVID-19 at 119 Ext. 9 for further directions.
You can also find out how much you are at risk of contracting the Corona virus through the Corona Virus Risk Check feature which has been provided free of charge by ALODOKTER.
If you have questions about the Corona virus, both about symptoms and prevention, don't hesitate to chat with doctors directly on the ALODOKTER application. You can also make an appointment with a doctor at the hospital through this application.