The Director General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr. Patrick Kumah Aboagye, has revealed that contact tracing in the Greater Accra Region has been strengthened in the quest to suppress the surge of the COVID-19 which has its highest recorded case count in Accra.
He stated that, there has been provision of logistics such as barcodes, sample bottles as well as supply of vehicles and contractual agreement with some commercial transport systems which has been reached to aid in contact tracing and home management purposes.
Speaking during a presser in Accra today, 25th January, 2021, he indicated that, as part of measures to help fight the virus, data management has been improved upon, and designated surveillance officers have been assigned to laboratories to support data entry and linkage to care adding that, his outfit will ensure laboratories operate 24 hours.
Additionally, risk communication, he indicated has been enhanced and has thus seen the engagement of target groups such as market queens, GPRTU on the need to adhere to safety protocols especially with the wearing of face mask.
Dr. Aboagye explained that, with such, various heads of the target groups after engaging with his outfit will engage also with their subordinates to adhere to all various protocols.
Touching on the expansion and the increase on testing to ascertain the degree of community spread in hotspots, he disclosed the introduction of antigen testing to be undertaken for suspected outbreaks in schools and at various workplaces and also in hospitals where health workers are exposed.
Dr. Aboagye said, he was very confident that the antigen test will be more effective and make the response to the surge faster adding also that, it will enable a wider reach especially with people in remote areas and help speed up testing activities.
Commenting on the new variant of the virus, he noted that, internally no case has been recorded but with travellers coming into the country some cases have been recorded and such patients have been isolated.
He further recommended decongestion in various spaces especially in workplaces espousing that, fewer workers must remain in the office.
“What we don’t want is, if this is to get to our workplaces there will be an explosion. So, we are recommending the decongestion of workplaces. Those things that can be done virtually let’s do it. Non-essential staff can be doing shifts so that, we have fewer people in the offices so that we don’t really spread it because this virus spreads amongst acquaintances.”
Dr. Aboagye asked for self-discipline amongst citizens and urged all to adhere to the laid down protocols in curbing the fast and wide spread nature of the virus.
According to reports from the Ghana Health Service, 679 new persons have been infected with the virus bringing the country’s total confirmed cases to 60,794.
The GHS also disclosed that, six more people in the country have died from the novel coronavirus which has brought the death toll to 367 with the country also currently having 3,286 active cases.
