Press Conference & COVID-19 Update (April 5, 2020)

Press Conference & COVID-19 Update (April 5, 2020)

Posted by Barbados Government Information Service on Sunday, April 5, 2020
Press conference and COVID-19 update with Minister of Health and Wellness, Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Bostic. (April 5, 2020)

Acting Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Anton Best, today revealed that the island had recorded four new cases of COVID-19, as of April 4, pushing the number of cases to 56.

Of the 56 cases, they were 28 males and 28 females, ranging from ages seven to 83, with the majority of them being in “mild to moderate condition”.

Noting the vast majority of these cases were imported, the acting Chief Medical Officer stated that authorities had “identified a significant portion of those cases through contact tracing, and three persons are still being investigated”.

It was against this background that Dr. Best reassured the public that health authorities were continuing aggressive surveillance, which includes testing for suspected cases of COVID-19, contact tracing, and the containment and isolation of new cases, once they were identified.

The Chief Medical Officer also reinforced the need to practise good hygiene, such as washing hands with soap and water or using an alcohol based sanitizer; covering the nose and mouth with tissue when coughing or sneezing and ensuring that the used tissue is properly discarded.

Dr. Best also reminded members of the public suffering illnesses of a respiratory nature and in need of medical attention not to visit their health care providers as is the custom.  

He advised that they should call their doctor for advice on how to proceed, or the COVID-19 hotline set up by the Ministry of Health and Wellness at 536-4500.

nya.phillips@barbados.gov.bb

Pin It on Pinterest