COVID-19 cases now at eight in Guyana

Minister of Public Health Volda Lawrence yesterday announced that three additional cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been detected in Guyana, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in Guyana to eight, including one death.

Providing an update on the Ministry of Public Health’s (MoPH) Facebook page, Lawrence revealed that three persons tested positive for the respiratory disease on Friday.

COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by a new virus. The disease causes respiratory illness with symptoms including coughing, fever, and in more severe cases, difficulty breathing. It was first recorded in Wuhan, China and has since spread across the globe causing the World Health Organization (WHO) to label it a global pandemic.

MoPH Public Relations Officer Terrence Esseboom told Sunday Stabroek that the three additional cases are not linked to the first five confirmed cases, nor are they linked to the community of Good Hope, East Coast Demerara, where the first local cases were recorded. He declined to answer any other question saying that the ministry does not intend to release information regarding the three new cases because of the way the press “hounded” relatives of patient zero.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer (DCMO) Dr Karen Gordon-Boyle, when contacted, said that the MoPH is still conducting investigations as it relates to the three new cases and she was not permitted to say anything at that point.

However, Sunday Stabroek was told that one of the three persons who tested positive for COVID-19 returned to Guyana recently after travelling through a number of countries which are currently battling the disease.

The patient reportedly got sick after returning to the country and called the MoPH hotline. A response team was sent to his home on the East Bank Demerara. He was interviewed before being taken to an isolation facility on the West Demerara, where he began displaying severe COVID-19 symptoms. He was then transported back to a facility in the city and was tested on Friday.

Meanwhile, during her update, Lawrence revealed that as of Friday, the total number of persons who were tested rose from 39 to 44. Thirty-one persons are in institutional quarantine while seven persons are now in institutional isolation. The minister said that the number of persons that were asked to self-quarantine has changed but she did not say how many are still in self-quarantine. However, she said, the MoPH is continuing to offer psychosocial support for those in need of those services.

She revealed that every region has the capacity to cater for 134 persons. These facilities are in addition to the four that can accommodate 350 persons. Additionally, the minister said as of Friday, the MoPH hotlines received 856 calls.

Well-equipped

The minister further disclosed that since a case of COVID-19 was confirmed in the Brazilian town of Bom Fim close to Lethem, the Region Nine Task Force has implemented additional precautionary measures in the region. She revealed that since then, three sensitisation sessions were held with several stakeholders and other sessions with businesses and banks are currently ongoing. Public places like the Lethem Market have been sanitised and officials have been visiting other public areas to ensure that measures are being implemented and people are taking precautions by following the infection control protocols.

Additionally, Lawrence stated, officials are visiting various villages in the region to promote various precautionary measures and share fliers with COVID-19 information. They also visited a number of unconventional ports of entry and found members of the Brazilian army stationed at several of the popular crossings. She added that Guyanese police have also been placed at several of those locations and the regional Task Force will continue to work with the police and army. She also noted the initiatives taken by the Indigenous leaders of Sand Creek and Aishalton,  where checkpoints were established to monitor the entrances to the communities.

The minister also disclosed that the Lethem Hospital has identified an isolation facility, which currently has four beds but can accommodate seven. She said that it is well-equipped with protective gear and sanitisation supplies, which have also been sent to health centres and hospitals across the region. The Lethem Hospital has also implemented sanitisation measures for all staff and patients who enter the facility.

On another note, the minister stated that infection and control measures are being instituted in prisons and homes for the elderly countrywide.

Lawrence thanked the Pan American Health Organization and the World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) for the donations they have made to Guyana and for the support they have given to the ministry during the preparatory and implementation phases of the ministry’s national response plan.

The minister also explained why it was necessary to close all ports of entry. She highlighted that the number of imported cases in Shanghai, China and Ireland are much higher than local cases in those areas and it is the imported cases that are putting a strain on their health systems.

Negative

Meantime, the MoPH is still investigating a report that two Cuban nationals, who recently visited Guyana, tested positive for COVID-19 upon their return to their country. Gordon-Boyle told Sunday Stabroek that they are still waiting for a response from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Further, on Thursday night, a man suspected of having COVID-19 died at the gates of the West Demerara Regional Hospital. According to the Regional Administration’s official Facebook page, the hospital was sanitised twice while staff members who were in direct contact with the dead man were asked to self-quarantine pending the results of tests.

Yesterday, it was revealed that the test was negative for COVID-19. This was confirmed by a health official who said that the man reportedly visited Guyana’s first COVID-19 patient when she was ill.

Concerned

Meanwhile, in an address to the nation yesterday, President David Granger said that Guyana has responded quickly to the COVID-19 pandemic, which is currently ravaging several countries and which has claimed thousands of lives. He noted that the National COVID-19 Task Force (NCTF), which is chaired by Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, has drafted a National Strategic Master Plan that will guide Guyana’s approach to combatting COVID-19. He further noted that the NCTF will continue to monitor the situation in Guyana including the conduct of citizens.

“We are concerned that too many citizens and businesses have been ignoring public advisories and warnings,” the president said.

He said that Lawrence has kept Cabinet informed and the public abreast on the progress of the national anti-coronavirus campaign and will continue to do so. He urged Guyanese to continue to support all medical professionals and take precautionary measures including social distancing and avoiding all public gatherings. “I urge also that persons remain calm and implement all guidelines relating to personal hygiene and infection prevention and control,” Granger said.

On March 16th, the president issued directives under the Public Health Ordinance and in accordance with international standards to prevent and control the spread of COVID-19. “I authorised the Minster of Public Health to take all measures considered necessary to restrain, segregate and isolate persons suffering from the disease and, or who may be likely to be suffering from the disease,” he recalled.

Granger emphasised that the public must adhere to infection prevention and control measures as personal conduct is the single most important element in preventing the spread of COVID-19. He noted that Lawrence has since established the Health Emergency Operations Centre, which has been conducting screening, testing, quarantining and if necessary, isolating of persons suspected of having contracted the virus or who may have been in contact with infected persons. He thanked them for the work they have done to contain the disease.

“Guyanese, a cavalier approach in the face of this global pandemic can seriously impair our efforts to combat COVID-19. Consequences will be devastating for the entire population,” he warned.

Guyana confirmed its first case of COVID-19 on March 11, 2020, after a 52-year-old woman who had travelled from the United States to Guyana on March 5th died at the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH).  On March 10th, the 52-year-old, who also suffered from diabetes and hypertension, went to the Dr Balwant Singh Hospital, where she was told to go to the GPH after the woman began displaying COVID-19 symptoms. She was admitted to the GPH and died the next morning. She was subsequently tested for COVID-19 and the president confirmed that night the positive result.

Several persons who were on the flight with the woman were subsequently quarantined while over 43 persons from the GPH were asked to self-quarantine after they came into contact with the patient. Eighteen persons related to the 52-year-old have also been asked to self-quarantine.

Four of the woman’s relatives have since been diagnosed with COVID-19.

Since the confirmation of the first case, all schools have been closed until April 20th, while the National Grade Six Assessment was postponed until further notice and the University of Guyana’s campuses have been shuttered. Further, the Cheddi Jagan and Eugene F. Correia international airports have suspended operations until further notice, and ports to countries which border Guyana have been closed while seaports were closed to international vessels except merchant ships from March 21st.

Additionally, public servants have been working on a rotational shift system while the Guyana Police Force has augmented its deployment to deter persons from using the unconventional route to enter and leave East Berbice. The Guyana Revenue Authority has further waived the Value Added Tax on medical supplies associated with the testing, prevention and treatment of COVID-19.