Efforts are on to assist COVID-19 positive patients in the Home Isolation Programme in several aspects.
This was acknowledged today by Consultant Manager of Home Quarantine and a member of the Isolation and Home Quarantine Committee, Dr. Adanna Grandison, during a press conference at Ilaro Court.
She revealed that a move was on to ensure the availability of an automated electronic format to provide the NIS form that they would need to ensure that they received their claims.
Likewise, she noted that, in a continuing effort to build out capacity, because there were so many people out in community, the retrofitting of the programme’s “red bus” was being finalised.
Elaborating on the bus, Dr. Grandison said: “This is a bus essentially that is able to sit six persons who require oxygen, so that in the event we need to transport more than one person. I know a lot of persons can bear witness to the fact that sometimes we may not always have all of the ambulance provisions that we may need, and so we thought it necessary, especially for our COVID positive patients, to provide them with an additional mode of transportation that they can get safely from home to the central isolation facility, and we are days away from that red bus actually starting to provide services to the public.”
The consultant also encouraged persons to remember the contact number 536-1800, in case they tested positive for COVID-19, and to call the number if there were any changes in their condition, or their symptoms worsened, as it was a dedicated 24-hour hotline.
Instructing all Barbadians to practise the non-pharmacologic measures, the Head of the Home Isolation Programme urged the continued wearing of masks, especially with a COVID-19 positive person in the household.
She contended that even where there was a separate bedroom and bathroom, persons in the household should wear masks when interacting with that person.
“Please wear your mask and wear it properly. Continue to wash your hands and sanitise your areas, and wherever possible stand six feet away from each other,” Dr. Grandison stressed.