On September 30, the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) warned that health systems in the Americas were not adequately responding to the needs of older adults and must be adapted in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. For the International Day of Older Persons on October 1, PAHO called for comprehensive, person-centred, integrated care and primary health services that are responsive to older people´s needs.
How each individual older person might be affected by COVID-19, or any other disease, depends on their overall physical and mental health, so care and treatment should always take this into consideration, PAHO asserted.
It noted that while everyone is at risk of contracting COVID-19, older persons are far more likely to experience severe disease following infection, with those over 80 years old dying at five times the average rate. It said that this was also the case in the Americas, where most COVID deaths occur in those aged 70 and over, followed by people between the ages of 60-69 years.
While older persons receiving long term care have been hardest hit, accounting for 40-80% of COVID-19 deaths worldwide, PAHO said that in the Americas where the care of older adults is more likely to take place in the home, physical distancing is a particular challenge.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has really emphasized the needs and vulnerabilities that older persons have when it comes to their right to health,” said Carissa F. Etienne, PAHO/WHO Director.
“Too often, we are not hearing their voices and perspectives when it comes to their care. Older people have the same right to care as anyone else. No lives are more valuable than others”, she added.
The recent surge in deaths of the elderly here especially in the last six weeks underlines the exact concerns that have been raised by PAHO. Older Guyanese with underlying conditions and other vulnerable categories with chronic health problems are now at the mercy of COVID-19.
With the mounting death toll and rising cases it is clear that COVID-19 has spread to all parts of the country and as with any affliction of its type, the virus is wreaking havoc in vulnerable communities.
Region One (Barima-Waini) is commendably taking action to screen the elderly. The Chairman of the Region, Brentnol Ashley told the Sunday Stabroek that 18 deaths have occurred in Region One from COVID-19 so far and that the majority of the fatal cases are elderly persons from the Mabaruma and Matarkai sub-districts. He said protocols have already been put in place and a team from each sub-district will travel to their respective communities to conduct screening and to test persons if necessary so that infected vulnerable persons can get the care they need before it is too late.
This measure should be taken across the country but it is doubtful that the requisite resources can be mobilised to undertake this task. Until a viable vaccine has been approved for the Guyanese populace, urgent measures should be taken by families to protect their vulnerable relatives from COVID-19.
The Ministry of Health should give clear and specific advice to families on how this should be done. Public education is important but this is an area where neither the APNU+AFC administration nor the new government has excelled.
Given the cramped conditions in which many families live – particularly in the city – there should be clear guidance from the Ministry on how families are to protect the elderly and other vulnerable categories from COVID-19 considering the extensive and unrelenting spread of the virus.
Elderly persons should be separated as best as possible from other occupants of their homes. They should only be attended to by family members who are in their “bubble”. The same should apply to younger persons with known chronic illnesses. Face masks should be worn by both the elderly and those that they come into contact with on a daily basis. The elderly must have the requisite sanitisers and they have to limit external visits to emergencies only. When on those external visits they have to be fully protected with masks.
Given that families sometimes procrastinate in relation to seeking treatment for their loved ones, it would have made eminent sense for the Ministry of Health and the COVID taskforce to publish the treatment protocols that have worked best in elderly persons infected with COVID-19. Surely, over the seven months that doctors – particularly those in the ICU – have been treating patients they have devised protocols which are the most effective for patients in terms of medications and other interventions. This would be useful information for families who might not be able to immediately get their family members to medical facilities. This is the type of information that the Ministry of Health and PAHO should be seeking to disseminate here.
As the number of cases and deaths continues to rise inexorably, the ministry and the COVID-19 taskforce should take a careful look at minibus operations. Whereas masks are widely worn on buses, many carry more passengers than they should, violating social distancing rules. This also enables the transmission of the virus among passengers particularly in cases where there may not be adequate sanitisation of the buses between trips.
The rise in COVID-19 deaths is alarming and the Ministry and the taskforce have to take a hard look at what needs to be done to protect the elderly and the vulnerable particularly in light of the planned reopening of the international airports from today. There is no time for finger-pointing about who is responsible for what. Positive action must be taken by all to protect the elderly and other vulnerable groups from the death grip of this virus.
