–Health official urges East Coast residents to take advantage of Paradise facility

ONE day after a COVID-19 Screening and Sample-collecting Centre was established at Paradise, on the East Coast Demerara (ECD), nine persons have been screened, two of whom have been tested for the dreaded Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease, having met the criteria. Their results are pending.

The two persons exhibited symptoms associated with the disease, such as fever, dry cough, and shortness of breath. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough. Some patients even experience aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat and diarrhea.
In an interview on Tuesday at the Paradise COVID-19 Centre, the Region Four Deputy Regional Health Officer, Dr. Christopher Seetram said as the Ministry of Public Health bolsters its testing capacity, it’s important for persons who are exhibiting signs of the disease to visit the COVID-19 Screening and Sample-collecting Centre.

“If you know you have signs and symptoms; if you believe you might have been exposed, I urge you to come and get tested at the Paradise Health facility if you are on the East Coast,” he pleaded.

Testing, Dr. Seetram, said is critical in the fight to combat the disease, which has seen more than 3 million cases being recorded globally, inclusive of more than 200,000 deaths. Locally, there have been eight (8) deaths since the first COVID-19 case was recorded on March 11, 2020. A total of 75 cases have been recorded to date, with more than 460 persons being tested.

IMPORTANCE OF TESTING
“As we flatten the curve, testing is one of the most important aspects,” the Deputy Regional Health Officer said.
In an effort to accelerate the country’s rate of testing, the Pan-American Health Organisation/World Health Organisaiton (PAHO/WHO) has provided the Ministry of Public Health with 7,000 testing kits to supplement the 2,000 it initially had.

Dr. Seetram, while noting that the COVID-19 hotlines are still operable, said that no appointments are needed before visiting the COVID-19 Screening and Sample-collecting Centres at Paradise, and at Herstelling, on the East Bank Demerara. Those centres operate from 09:00hrs to 15:00hrs from Monday to Friday.

Once at the Centre, Dr Seetram said, the process is simple, and is facilitated by a team of highly-skilled medical professionals, inclusive of doctors and nurses.
“After washing your hands, you will be screened by a trained health personnel, who will take your signs and symptoms, and if needs be, your vital signs, for example, your temperature, your blood pressure and blood sugar,” Dr. Seetram explained.

He noted that further screening will be done to determine whether the person meets the criteria for testing to be done, and that once a person meets the criteria for testing, a sample is taken. “It is a three-stage process; the last stage we swab you,” the Deputy Regional Health Officer noted.

Samples are sent to the National Reference Laboratory, where the actual test will be conducted. As it is now, Guyana is using the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) method to test persons for COVID-19. And, according to health authorities, this type of testing takes about seven hours to produce results.

HOLDING AREA
Dr. Seetram said in the event a patient manifests shortness of breath and other respiratory symptoms associated with COVID-19, he or she will be placed in an established “holding area” and arrangements would be made for that person to be quarantined if necessary.
Importantly, the Deputy Regional Health Officer said mechanisms have been put in place to safeguard the health personnel from contracting the disease in the event they come into contact with a COVID-19 patient. He explained that three specially-designed cubicles have been built to prevent any physical contact during screening and the collection of samples.
If an individual is unable to visit the Screening and Sample-collecting Centres, Dr. Seetram iterated that the COVID-19 hotline can be utilised, in addition to mobile sample-collecting units.

Meanwhile, in an effort to suppress the spread of the disease, the Deputy Regional Health Officer is calling on all Guyanese to take the necessary precautionary measures. “From what we know, wearing masks, practising physical distancing and also personal hygiene can flatten the curve, and reduce the spread of Coronavirus,” he said.

In a public plea to citizens of Guyana, Minister of Public Health Volda Lawrence reminded the nation, “A mask is better than a ventilator; home is better than the ICU! Prevention is better than cure, and it’s not curfew; it’s care for YOU!”