Positive COVID-19 cases increase to 24
LAST NIGHT, Barbadians were alerted that the country has recorded six more positive COVID-19 cases, pushing the figure to 24.
Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley, along with Chief Medical Office (Ag) Dr. Anton Best, broke the news last night during a broadcast to the public. The last update was given on Tuesday.
According to Dr. Best, “Over the last two days we have diagnosed three additional persons each day bringing the total to 24 cases of COVID-19 out of a total of 207 tests that we’ve conducted over the past three weeks."
Giving a further breakdown, the CMO explained that 13 of those cases are women and 11 of those cases are males. “Thirteen of the cases are also imported with a majority of those imported cases being persons who are Barbadian. Ten of those cases were diagnosed through contact- tracing and one is still under investigation, ” he said adding that all 24 cases are in isolation facilities.
Prime Minister Mottley said while there may be varying views on what those numbers mean for Barbados, COVID 19 is “not running free in the country”. “We however believe that the time has come nevertheless for us to strengthen our measures to keep our COVID 19 profile intact, and not to allow it to go ahead of us.”
“Indeed, we are one case away from what we indicated to the country would be the threshold for us determining that Stage 3 is upon us. Earlier today (Thursday) the Cabinet of Barbados met and we agreed that we would declare immediately Stage 3 with concomitant steps to be determined.”
The Prime Minister told the public that the stocks of medical supplies are “satisfactory”. “Not what I would have personally have wanted but above the average of many countries. The truth is that for the last three weeks the world has literally seen a disruption in its supply and logistics chain. Fortunately for us the Ministry of Health and the rest of the Government of Barbados would have started ahead of the curve and therefore we are in a good enough condition to start this.” In fact, she revealed that out of all the patients tested not one of them had to use a ventilator.
“The world is at this moment scrambling, all for the same items. Ventilators, testing kits, swabs...We have adequate supplies of all..but yet we placed additional orders, some weeks ago I might add, with suppliers on virtually every continent of the world and we will be receiving them on a staggered basis.
“This is important because in a very real basis we understand that we may well be in this condition without a vaccine for quite a few months, it is therefore important that we continue to be able to replenish our stocks as we go forward.”
The Prime Minister reiterated that there are “more than enough” testing kits on the island. “This government has not only received more than 600 recently when the last time we spoke last week, but 2 500 came in again today (yesterday) and I can assure you that the Government of Barbados has ordered 50 000 with a requirement of the Ministry of Health to order another 50 000 in the event that we shall need them. The same applies to swabs and ventilators,” Prime Minister Mottley assured. (JH)