Guyana has recorded 12 new Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) cases, including the first for Region Two, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Shamdeo Persaud announced yesterday.
The announcement came one day before the existing COVID-19 Emer-gency Measures, including the national curfew, are expected to expire.
The announcement was made during the Ministry of Public Health’s COVID-19 update yesterday afternoon when the Chief Medical Officer Dr. Shamdeo Persaud revealed that some 12 new cases were recorded, which moved the number of positive confirmed cases in the country to 171. No information was provided on where the 12 cases came from. Dr. Persaud noted that Region Two has now recorded its first case.
There are now eight regions in the country that have so far recorded cases. Regions Five and Eight are the only regions that have not recorded any cases as yet.
During the last testing cycle, 36 persons were tested, which moved the number of persons tested to 1,995. With the latest results, 60 persons are now in institutional isolation which also accounts for the number of active cases in the country. Twenty-four persons are now in institutional quarantine even as there were no new recoveries and the deaths as a result of the virus remain the same.
The Chief Medical Officer again urged members of the mining communities to ensure their safety by adhering to the public health guidelines. As a result, he further urged persons to desist from self-medicating if they have symptoms of COVID-19 and to seek medical attention.
Even as a number of Guyanese are expected to be repatriated during this week, Dr. Persaud said that persons travelling at this time are subject to pre-screening, which includes temperature and symptom checks along with health assessments. He noted that persons traveling should ensure they are using the relevant personal protective equipment and to practice physical distancing on board aircraft.
It was not clear how transmission occurred in the Region Two case. However, previously Regional Health Officer for the region Dr. Afarah Khan had reported that they had developed a strong screening system within the region at the Supenaam stelling, government offices and all health facilities within the region.
