Health and Wellness Minister, Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Bostic. (FP)

Surveillance at the ports of entry in response to the coronavirus will be bolstered from this week, with assistance from the Barbados Defence Force (BDF).

Minister of Health and Wellness, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Bostic, disclosed this on Tuesday, as he briefed the media on the outcomes of an emergency meeting of Health Ministers of CARICOM, called by the CARICOM Secretariat on Monday, to examine issues related to the coronavirus.

The press briefing was held at the Ministry’s headquarters at the National Insurance Building, Culloden Road, St. Michael, and attended also by acting Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Kenneth George and senior officials in the Ministry.

Mr. Bostic said: “So, we have asked for some assistance from the Barbados Defence Force from their medical personnel to join with port health in order to give us some more numbers at ports of entry, particularly at the airport, especially when we have large numbers of flights of persons coming into the country.

“And, we are deploying obviously the thermal detectors in full from this evening to be able to assist in that process. The institutions also spoke to how we deal and treat to visitors coming in, persons coming for example from China and any impacted area.  And, we have been doing that with our port health officials being able to isolate those persons that we are aware of when flights are landing in Barbados.”

joy-ann.gill@barbados.gov.bb

Pin It on Pinterest