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The Southern Ketu Municipality of the Volta Region has been identified as an emerging access point for the spread of the coronavirus in the region.
This is because the municipality has so far registered 11 of the 16 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the region.
Six of the 11 cases were travelers in quarantine, while the rest of the 5 cases were detected during the enhanced contact tracking exercise.
In a telephone interview, Deputy Regional Director Volta in charge of Public Health, Dr. Kwesi Djokoto, indicated that all the measures implemented since the beginning of the pandemic will be further strengthened to allow the municipality to detect cases early, contain them and handle them properly.
The measures he said included public education, improved surveillance and location of contacts, and appropriate case management.
As part of the improved contact tracing measures, groups most likely to have come into contact with cases such as staff from various security agencies, port health personnel, commercial drivers and motorists will be examined for guarantee the early identification and isolation of those infected. people.
“When all of these measures are implemented, the municipality’s ability to locate infected people early and isolate them would improve, thus preventing further spread [of the virus]”, he said.
He further indicated that this approach would help prevent potential runs of the virus from infecting vulnerable groups such as the elderly in society and people with serious underlying medical conditions who may have severe presentations of the disease.
Lack of PPE for front-line workers
Dr. Djokoto urged the public to be cautious in reporting complaints of lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline workers in the region.
He explained that, in some cases, rumors of a lack of PPE were found to be inaccurate after investigations.
In other cases, the expectations of some staff members were not in line with infection prevention and control measures. However, this challenge has been largely addressed after the necessary training sessions were held, ”added Dr. Djokoto.
He stressed that the Regional Health Directorate will always have a strong interest in the safety and well-being of all health workers as they continue to provide services in these difficult times.
He said that the regional health directorate had recently received PPE to distribute to the 18 districts of the Volta region.
However, he praised public and private institutions as well as Ghanaians who have contributed immensely to various facilities to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Djokoto advocated a collaborative approach to fighting the coronavirus devoid of partisan interests.
He emphasized that “we are all at risk and it would take the effort of all of us to overcome this challenge.”
