Ministry says chicken pox outbreak at Lusignan prison `appears to be under control’

Part of the Lusignan Prison

The Ministry of Health (MoH) last night said that a chicken pox outbreak at the Lusignan Prison “appears to be under control”.

It rejected an assertion by the opposition APNU+AFC that the MoH and the medical team that work with Prisons Health have not taken adequate actions to combat the chickenpox outbreak in the  Prison. 

The MoH assured the prisoners, staff members and their family members that all precautions are being taken to ensure no further spread of chickenpox occurs at the Lusignan prison.

The chickenpox outbreak that has affected 53 prisoners was likely  started by  a prisoner, staff member or a visitor, the ministry said. The medical and surveillance teams are presently conducting contact-tracing to identify the source of the infection, it added.