(Jamaica Gleaner) The Bahamas has confirmed its first case of COVID-19.
The patient is a 61-year-old woman.
However, at a press conference yesterday afternoon, acting Health Minister Jeffrey Lloyd said the woman has not traveled in the past 20 days.
“We are currently investigating her family and social contacts to determine whether they could have been the source of her infection,” Lloyd said.
He said the case was detected in the health system because of the Ministry of Health’s enhanced surveillance methods for COVID-19.
These measures include physicians reporting patients who present with respiratory infections and testing where indicated.
“We made the decision to expand our testing and have a heightened sensitivity for persons presenting with influenza like symptoms due to lessons learnt from countries that have diagnosed cases in keeping with this enhanced surveillance approach,” Lloyd said.
Several other Caribbean countries have reported cases of the virus including Jamaica, Guyana, Antigua and the Dominican Republic.
In the meantime, Lloyd said the patient and her family members have been informed of the diagnosis.
He also said she is now being treated at the designated isolation area of the Princess Margaret Hospital.