The Health Ministry will be investigating cases of paediatric COVID-19 deaths, Minister of Health Dr. Frank Anthony said yesterday.
He made the announcement during his daily COVID-19 update, where he stated that since the pandemic started, Guyana has reported the deaths of some 15 children, some of whom had comorbidities. The deceased include a three-month-old, who succumbed on January 14, a 14-month-old, who succumbed on January 11, and a three-year-old, who succumbed on January 9.
“For some of those children… we know for sure some of the comorbidities that they have had and the challenges because some of them, the prognosis was poor with the underlying disease and then they got COVID so that compounded or complicated the problem,” he said.
Anthony further noted that in recent days the country has seen the deaths of four children and as a result it will be something authorities will further investigate. Three of the four children were dead before they arrived at the hospital. He stated, “So that’s why we have to investigate these cases further. When the mother was interviewed in some cases, we would have heard that the child was irritable the night before, had some fever and by the next morning had difficulty breathing.”
Anthony stated that with some of the cases, there is need for more details.
He added that within the ministry there is a small committee of doctors who will be reviewing the charts and information thoroughly and interviewing the families of the children to get a better understanding of the situation.
