29 new COVID-19 cases recorded

— active cases now 327

Guyana has recorded 29 new cases of the novel coronavirus in one day, which has raised the total statistics to 538 with a total of 327 active cases.
The Health Ministry on Thursday stated that the number of deaths remained at 22 – the latest of which was recorded on Tuesday.
Of the 327 active cases, 38 are in institutional quarantine and two persons are in the designated Intensive Care Unit (ICU). To date, 189 persons have recovered. The Ministry has conducted tests on 5165 persons with 4627 negative results.
On Monday, newly-elected President Dr Irfaan Ali, along with Prime Minister Mark Phillips; Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo and Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony met with health officials from both the public and private health institutions at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC).
One of the suggestions that came from Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr Shamdeo Persaud, was for a halt to illegal movement through Guyana’s borders, as it is evidently linked to the large increase in positive COVID-19 cases recorded recently.
Cross-border movement into the country has led to an increase in cases throughout the interior regions, namely Regions Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni); Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) and Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo). Region One (Barima-Waini) had also seen a large spike last month.
Earlier this week, Dr Persaud had explained that the spike in Region Nine particularly comes in the wake of the exponential increase in Brazil, where new cases and deaths continue unabated. Brazil has recorded close to 100,000 deaths with hundreds of new cases every day –- a situation which is beyond controllable.
“The health authorities are busily engaged in tightening the measures to prevent the further transmission of the raging coronavirus disease. So, I plead with you to halt the illicit cross-border movement, look out for the migrants and report their presence immediately to the authorities; on a personal level, I ask you to cooperate and comply with the regulations of social distancing and the hygiene etiquette,” the CMO cautioned.
His contention remained that further spread of the virus could be curtailed if the general populace abided by the regulations, especially those related to movement. The need for persons to cease cross-border movement has been voiced for many weeks, but much to the surprise of health officials, it continues.
The new Administration has already committed to more testing and a targeted response for the hinterland communities which face challenges of transport and medical facilities.