THE Regional Health Department of Region Five (Mahaica/Berbice) has set up a Regional Response Team and a Regional Emergency Operations Centre as part of efforts to prevent the coronavirus from entering the region.

Both teams were put into force by Regional Health Officer, Dr. Desmond Nicholson, during a meeting of public health officials in the region.

During the meeting chaired by Regional Executive Officer, Ovid Morrison, the Department fined tuned its plans for countering the virus on coastal areas as well as the riverine areas of the Mahaica Mahaicony and Abary rivers.

RHO Nicholson stressed that the department wants people who feel unwell to report their illness to the Regional Health Department.

“We don’t want people to visit the health centres or the two hospitals. We want people who feel unwell and are unsure of their symptoms  to call in using telephone numbers provided,” he said.

These numbers are Fort Wellington Hospital, 232-0305; Mahaicony Cottage Hospital, 221-2209 and national hotline numbers: 231-1166, 226-7490, 226-7480, 624-6674, 644-2936, 611-9216, 624-2819, 624-3067, and 624-9355.

It will be the role of members of the Regional Response Team to visit the homes of callers and determine whether their condition warranted being taken into the triage areas or to the isolation centre at the Mahaicony Hospital.

He said the triage centres have been established at each of the two Hospitals as well as the 16 health centres in the region.

“We don’t want any persons suspected of carrying the virus to get into close proximity with persons who are otherwise ill because the results of a person otherwise ill, being infected with the virus can be fatal,” he said.

With respect to the riverine areas, he said those areas closer to the coastland are being monitored and an ambulance is currently available for transporting persons suspected to be infected with the virus from the riverine areas closer to the coast.

The regional health department has made a request for another ambulance to be provided in case there are occurrences where persons from different areas need to be transported simultaneously.

The department has also asked for the provision of a water ambulance to visit persons living in the upper reaches of these rivers.

With respect to the community of Moraikobai, he said the community is being served by medical staff resident in the village.

He disclosed that the staffers at the village have been making residents aware of the virus and protective action they need to take.

He said that these staffers have been trained to provide initial support for any infected person in Moraikobai, including isolation.

He assured that the medical personnel stationed at Moraikobai  are equipped with adequate supplies of protective wear and sanitising equipment and the department is in constant communications with its personnel in the village.

There is a contingency plan in place that will see infected persons being brought down to Mahaicony Hospital and subsequently to quarantine areas in Georgetown for treatment and until recovery.

The department is also raising public awareness of the virus. This is done at the hospitals, health centres and in communities.

Morrison also called on all stakeholders to observe all the measures to protect themselves against the virus.