The Health Ministry is monitoring all arrivals from West Africa, where the death toll from the Ebola virus has risen to over 3,000, but Chief Medical Officer Dr Shamdeo Persaud says it is “highly unlikely” that it the disease will reach Guyana since the country is an “end of travel zone.”
He said the Health Ministry has set up a register at both the Cheddi Jagan International Airport and the Ogle International Airport to list persons who are coming with passports from Africa and they are making contact with those people on a weekly basis to ensure that they are well.
At least 20 persons travelling from West Africa have entered Guyana. Persaud said the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) register has recorded 17 arrivals, while three others were logged at the Ogle Airport from the continent.
None of these persons were infected with the disease. But Persaud noted that the Ministry has nonetheless developed a case definition for the disease and it is being used at the two international airports. “We can quarantine any person if we recognise that they are a risk,” he explained.
He said Port Health Officers also inspect the countries where they have travelled. “Luckily for us, most of our travelers from the African Continent have to travel through another airport. We don’t have direct flights,” he said, noting that most of those airports have stringent security measures.
Two security spots at the CJIA have been identified to be used as examination rooms if they suspect a possible case entering the country. He said they are looking to have a “hanger” where persons can stay if an aircraft enters Guyana and there are reports of people on board with probable symptoms. He said the entire aircraft would be quarantined.
“The plan is to stop Ebola from entering Guyana,” he said, adding that they were seeking to acquire hand held scanners to scan for fever.
Persaud have indicated that the ministry was collaborating with the Texila American University to keep track of students travelling from West Africa to Guyana. He said they have asked the university to monitor the students to ensure that they are not developing any symptoms of the disease.
Ebola, an infectious, often fatal disease that is spread through human-human transmission, causes fever and severe internal bleeding. It spreads through direct contact with the blood, secretion, organs and other bodily fluids of infected people, and with surfaces and materials— such as bedding and clothing—contaminated with these fluids.
The incubation period is usually two to 21 days and often begins suddenly with an influenza-like stage characterized by fatigue, fever, headaches as well as joint, muscle, and abdominal pains. Infected people also experience vomiting, diarrhea and loss of appetite.
Early symptoms of the virus may be similar to those of malaria, dengue fever or other tropical fevers, before it progresses to the bleeding stage.
The World Health Organisation said over 3,000 people have died from the deadly outbreak in West Africa. More than 6,500 people are believed to have been infected in the region. Liberia was named as the worst affected country with a death toll of 1,830 cases.
The virus has been listed as a “threat to global security” by United States President Barack Obama and the number infected people are expected to rise to more than 20,000 by early November.
