-Hinterland regions still highly vulnerable to the disease

THE need for maturity and responsibility in society cannot be stressed enough by health authorities, as cases of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) continue to rise with every passing day.

Tuesday was no different, as the country recorded seven new cases within the past 24 hours, following 37 COVID-19 tests.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer (DCMO), Dr. Karen Boyle, said health authorities have so far tested 2,926 persons, with 2,642 being negative and 284 being positive. Of the positive cases, some 125 persons have recovered and 16 persons have died, but authorities are still monitoring 143 active cases of which, 11 persons are in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

“Fellow Guyanese, the number of positive cases continues to be a source of grave concern for the Ministry of Public Health. Over the past week, we have recorded another 25 new cases distributed in Regions One (Barima-Waini), Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), Four (Demerara-Mahaica) and Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), with four COVID-19 related deaths,” said Dr. Boyle, during a virtual COVID-19 update, on Tuesday.

In expressing her dissatisfaction with the situation, Dr. Boyle asked Guyanese, “are we really serious about returning to normalcy when we openly flout all the guidelines that have been outlined for our protection? Are we saying that we are uncaring about our life and that of others around us? Where has our appreciation for life disappeared to? It is unfair to our Healthcare Workers, ten of whom have become ill and have had to battle for their lives with COVID-19 and you know what, this was totally unnecessary but for your carelessness.”

She pleaded with persons to consider their actions and envisage that their life could drastically change and end in fatality. “Avoid the COVID-19 trauma and cooperate fully with all who are working collaboratively with the Ministry of Public Health to contain the spread of this fatal disease in every community”.
Dr. Boyle reminded repatriated nationals that they are equally involved in the fight, and they ought to be cognisant of their agreement prior to their departure from overseas.

Such persons were reminded that even though their PCR- test results might have been negative prior to their departure, they still have to cooperate with the health officials and provide accurate information on their arrival in Guyana.

“Our surveillance unit is tasked with following up on every single repatriate checking in daily by phone for early detection of signs and symptoms of the disease. This requires, among other things, the daily checking of body temperatures and hence all repatriates are required to bring thermometers with them. Kindly support our effort by reminding your family members to come armed with a thermometer,” Dr. Boyle advised.
According to the existing statistics, Regions One, Four, Seven and Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) continue to have most of the cases.
Regions One and Seven, in particular, have seen a rapid increase in the number of cases being recorded. Last Thursday, this newspaper reported that COVID-19 claimed the life of Abdool Khan, a miner from Bartica, in Region Seven.
The spike of cases in Regions One and Seven have since seen authorities implementing a lockdown of those areas, with restrictions of travel in and out of the areas at reference.

Health authorities had found that a large number of positive cases in these regions have no signs and symptoms, so they are what is known as asymptomatic. This means that these persons can transmit the disease, and the infected persons will not even know that they are sick, because there is no sign.
Medical teams were dispatched to Aranka and surrounding mining areas in Region Seven, as well as Moruca in Region One, to conduct mass testing to tackle the sudden spike of COVID-19 cases.

Dr. Boyle also spoke of the irresponsible actions by citizens in Region Nine whose intent was to transport Brazilians to Georgetown, ignorant of their COVID-19 status and cognisant that the COVID-19 situation in Brazil is out of control. Brazil has 1.63 m confirmed cases and 65,631 deaths.
The continuous rise in the amount of cases has seen local authorities creating a special emergency unit to enforce the control measures, and curtail the spread of the disease. Authorities believe that the rise is primarily because sections of the population continue to flout the existing measures, which include a national curfew.
COVID-19 remains a serious issue not just here in Guyana, but globally as well, and, according to global statistics, there are 11.3 million cases of COVID-19, with over 532,000 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 preventive measures to contain the spread of the disease.