-says Dr. Persaud, reminds Guyanese that no one is invincible to COVID-19

GUYANA has gone 24 hours without recording a new case of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease, but the fact remains that some persons are flouting the laws and ignoring the containment measures, putting their families, and, by extension, many other Guyanese at risk of contracting the deadly disease.

“Have you stopped to think of the unnecessary risk that you are exposing your children, your wife/ significant other, your mother or grandmother to? Yes, you are exposing your entire family,” Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr. Shamdeo Persaud, lamented, while providing the daily COVID-19 update, on Wednesday.

With growing concerns over the behaviour and attitude of some persons, Dr. Persaud reminded Guyanese that Georgetown continues to be the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic and that most of those persons, who have tested positive, to date, are males with a ratio of 49:44.

Further, it is predominantly clear that males are the main ones not adhering to the guidelines, congregating way past the curfew hours as if it were a prolonged holiday, said the CMO.

“As one male to another, I am pleading with you to do the practicable thing, which is to stay home and to be off the roadways. Do not think for one moment that you are invincible and that the virus cannot affect you because your area has not been identified as a COVID-19 hotspot,” Dr. Persaud warned.

Everyone is at risk and the only way to stop the cases from increasing and persons from dying is for persons to follow all the advice that has been given.
“If you must leave home, then it’s a no-no to go unprotected. You must put on your mask and keep the 6-feet physical distance. Ladies and gentlemen, we have been appealing to you to come forward if you have been in contact with a positive case or experiencing any of the symptoms associated with COVID-19.

“If you arrive at our facility at an advanced stage of the disease, you are placing yourself at a disadvantage, and there may be very little that we can do to save your life,” Dr. Persaud advised.

As health authorities continue to push on with efforts to reduce the spread of the disease, he urged persons, especially those who were in contact with infected persons, to stop providing incorrect information to the Ministry of Public Health’s surveillance unit.
Dr. Persaud lamented that it continues to be a challenge for health authorities to get accurate information from persons, because they are fearful of being isolated, hospitalised, stigmatised and discriminated against. This, however, cannot continue to be the case because the spread of the disease can only be contained if health authorities receive accurate information.

“My fellow Guyanese, it is imperative that we find those persons in our communities asap, who can spread COVID-19 without even realising it.
“We are pleading with you to access the mobile units when they come to your community. We must test your contacts and the contacts of their contacts; we must conduct tests in our hotspot areas to uncover the symptomatic and asymptomatic persons. Testing is critical if we are to contain this disease and flatten the curve,” said Dr. Persaud.

In an effort to improve the response to the pandemic, the Public Health Ministry had launched its mobile unit at the East La Penitence Health Centre, as well as at the community COVID-19 facilities of Region Four at Herstelling, on the East Bank Demerara, and at Paradise, on the East Coast Demerara.
And, while these units continue to function daily, the results of the COVID-19 tests take time to produce. Dr. Persaud assured persons that workers of the National Reference Laboratory, are working continuously to have tests conducted, but it takes at least six to eight hours to produce the results.

Health authorities have so far tested 714 persons, of which 621 are negative, but reality remains that Guyana has so far lost ten precious lives to the COVID-19 disease.
And, according to the latest statistics, three persons are fighting for their lives in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU), while 56 remain in isolation and six in quarantine.
To date the total number of patients seen in the COVID-19 ICU is 29 with seven deaths being registered within the ICU. The total number of patients, who were transferred from ICU, is 13, with the total number of patients who recovered and were discharged from ICU being three. In total, 27 persons have so far recovered.

Globally, there are over 3.5 million cases of COVID-19, with over 243,000 deaths. And with no approved treatment or cure, there is no assurance that persons will survive after contracting the disease. In the absence of approved medications, governments and authorities across the world have employed a number of preventative measures to contain the spread of the disease

Additionally, the government has extended its emergency measures to combat the dreaded disease, with the imposition of a 12-hour curfew on citizens. These emergency measures were taken pursuant to Paragraphs (1) and (2) (b) of the directive issued by the President, in accordance with the Public Health Ordinance, Cap. 145, and published in the Official Gazette, Legal Supplement B, on March 16, 2020. These measures have been extended to June 3, 2020.

As the country wages war against the deadly disease, President David Granger is on record as saying that the efforts of the country’s frontline workers, in particular those within the medical field, should not go unnoticed.

“I ask you… to think tenderly of our public health professionals and service providers; that is to say, our doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists and all other supporting staff, medical and non-medical, who are providing the required care for those in distress,” President Granger said, adding: “Public health practitioners are on the frontline of protecting those stricken by the disease; they have been working tirelessly, through this very difficult situation, to provide quality healthcare to those who have been infected and afflicted. Everyone in the public health system has played a vital part in the fight against this disease.”