…mass testing begins in Regions 1, 7
…active cases now at 141
The number of COVID-19 cases in Guyana continues to increase, with 16 new cases recorded on Saturday.
Prefab housing units have been installed in Moruca to accommodate COVID-19 positive patients in the community
According to the Public Health Ministry in its updated COVID-19 dashboard, this now brings the total number of novel coronavirus cases up to 272.
Guyana Times understands that a total of 68 tests were conducted within 24 hours.
The positive results are three cases from Region One (Barima-Waini); five cases from Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara); four cases from Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica); one case from Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni); two cases from Region Nine (Upper Takatu-Upper Essequibo) and one case from Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).
According to the COVID-19 dashboard, there are now 138 active cases in institutional isolation while the number of persons in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) has gone up to three.
Meanwhile, there are still 16 persons in institutional quarantine while the country’s COVID-19 death toll is at 14. Three more persons have recovered from the life-threatening virus, bringing the total number of recoveries to 120.
To date, 2779 persons have been tested for the novel coronavirus of which 2507 are negative.
As local health authorities continue to grapple with flattening the curve of the coronavirus pandemic, Region Four remains the epicentre of the outbreak in Guyana. However, there has been a significant rise in COVID-19 cases in the hinterland regions of Barima-Waini and Cuyuni-Mazaruni – the latter recording its first death from the virus just days ago. The victim was 34-year-old Abdool Khan of Bartica, who succumbed in the designated ICU located at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).
Mass testing
To this end, medical teams were deployed to the hard-hit communities in these regions and will be there until today.
According to a report from the Department of Public Information (DPI) on Saturday, the mandatory lockdown which has been imposed at Aranka in Region Seven and Moruca in Region One allowed the health teams to conduct mass screening and testing of individuals living and working in these areas.
Agencies collaborating with the Public Health Ministry to ensure this process is conducted effectively include the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), the Civil Defence Commission (CDC), the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) and the Guyana Defence Force (GDF), Regional Democratic Councils and Health Emergency Committees of Regions One and Seven among others.
Region One communities were fumigated last month as COVID-19 cases continue to rise in several subdistricts
While under lockdown, no one will be allowed in or out of these areas for one month, commencing July 6 to August 3, 2020.
Caretaker Public Health Minister, Volda Lawrence has noted that the medical teams of doctors, nurses, sanitisation staff and surveillance teams will all be doing their part to identify and isolate positive cases while quarantining contacts and monitoring their conditions.
It was noted that populations in these areas are small and are often on the move, hence the need for a lockdown.
The lockdown, or as the caretaker Health Minister terms it, the “cease order” will stop mining operation, especially in Aranka. It will also put a halt to border crossings which are frequent in this area.
Lawrence noted that the concern is not only directed at the border crossings between Guyana and Venezuela but also local border crossings between Regions One and Seven. The constant movement of people contributes to the spread of the virus and needs to stop forthwith, she emphasised.
“We are locking down for a month and there will be a cessation of business in there which is largely to stop the mining…. There is a lot of employment of migrants in these areas, in forestry, in mining and they are coming and going; that is why we are moving to close down the mines.”
Additionally, while a large number of positive cases have not manifested respiratory symptoms such as a cough, difficulty breathing or other flu-like symptoms, persons have experienced other signs which continuous research indicates is due to COVID-19.
“People may think they ate something bad and have diarrhoea or a constant headache but they might be infected,” Lawrence said in the DPI report.
As a result of these symptoms, persons in these areas are inclined to self-medicate, unaware that they might have been exposed to COVID-19 and have become a carrier of the virus.
“This is why we are carrying out extensive research because we noticed people are reacting differently to the disease. We are looking at all factors,” the caretaker Minister added.
She also pointed to the fact that many coastlanders work in the mining areas and in the absence of a lockdown and mass testing measures, the risk of more persons being infected on the coast is inevitable. “The objective is to stem the spread of the disease in there and stop it from coming out, going beyond that cluster area. As it is right now it is a community cluster.”
