Balikpapan - Pertamina Zone 8 Kalimantan Region Upstream Subholding held a town hall meeting titled COVID-19 Awareness. The event was held online on Sunday, 4 July. Zone 8 General Manager Agus Amperianto, PT Pertamina Corporate HSSE Center of Excellence dr. Eko Wahju Tjahjono, Zone 8 HSSE Manager Bahrain Munir and 910 Zone 8 workers and their families attended the event. 

The town hall meeting was aimed to increase Pertamina Zone 8 Kalimantan Region Upstream Subholding's self-awareness and sensitivity to the current COVID-19 pandemic situation in their surrounding areas. 

According to Ministry of Health's data on 3 July 2021, 2,256,851 people had been infected by COVID-19, with 1,015,147 recovered and 60,027 dead. The numbers are expected to rise if the public are not aware and do not comply to the health protocols. Through this town hall meeting, Agus Amperianto emphasized to all officers and their families to always be wary as the new COVID-19 variant could infect anyone. 

“To all the officers and your families, I urge you to always apply 5M: maintain distance, wear masks, wash your hands, avoid crowds and limit mobility and human interaction if not urgent, as well as apply VDJ or ventilation, duration, and distance. With these efforts and self-discipline, together we protect ourselves, our families and those around us,rdquo; he said. He also urged the  town hall meeting attendees to take care of each other and comply with the health protocols.“Because I care about myself, you, and all of us,” he said. 

During the same occasion, dr. Otto Rajasa explained the latest COVID-19 development such as transmission methods, symptoms, diagnoses, statistics, and the latest vaccine development in Indonesia. 

“The government is currently ramping up its massive vaccination effort. If we have the opportunity and privilege to be vaccinated, do it as soon as you can, do not hesitate and do not postpone it because all vaccines are proven and well-tested,” he said. 

Dr. Eko Wahju Tjahjono also explained about hemeostatis, an automatic human process and mechanism to maintain constant condition so their bodies can function normally despite the changes inside or outside of their environment. He explained that agent (cause of disease), host (immunity), and environment play parts in the spread of COVID-19. 

“Do understand that the COVID-19 virus can be transmitted without a host or intermediary, so the application of 5M and VDJ lays on us as an individual or a group. We have to realize that there are no perfect single intervention that could prevent the spread of the virus,” he explained. 

Pertamina Zone 8 Kalimantan Region Upstream Subholding currently applied efforts to handle and prevent the spread of COVID-19 through the management's commitment to handle crises through tight health protocols and vaccination acceleration to strengthen the hosts.