Ministry of Health Media Conference On COVID 19 Saturday March 20th 2021

Key Points from the Ministry of Health Virtual Media Conference on COVID-19 – Saturday March 20th, 2021: Technical Director, Epidemiology, Dr. Avery Hinds, noted an increase in the 7-day rolling average. Previously, the rolling average was 3 cases per day, but this has now risen to 9. This is as a result of some cluster cases. Dr. Hinds highlighted one case of a person who attended a religious service and infected persons (Primary and Secondary contacts). He warned that a small number of cases can blossom into a large group of Secondary cases and urged citizens to continue to follow the Public Health Guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19. - Wear masks over your nose and mouth. - Maintain physical distance. - Stay home if you are ill. - Wash hands regularly/use hand sanitiser. County Medical Officer of Health for County Caroni, Dr. Jeanine St Bernard, provided an update on the situation in County Caroni, which she described as a "surge." Currently, there are 60 cases of COVID-19 in County Caroni. Arising out of this surge, health officials are now following up on more than 900 Primary, Secondary and Tertiary contacts (all quarantined). Health officials are also swabbing all contacts of COVID-19 Positive cases in County Caroni. Dr. St. Bernard confirmed that a sick individual presented to a health institution for swabbing and then went to church. However, the church at the centre of this event is not located in County Caroni. This one case generated 23 Primary Contacts, 46 Secondary contacts and 41 Tertiary contacts. Dr. St. Bernard added that one COVID-19 Positive individual from the County Caroni cluster was associated with a bar. From contact tracing, health officials were able to identify four Primary contacts, who were swabbed and found to be COVID-19 Positive, and five Secondary contacts, with two turning out to be Positive. Dr. St. Bernard noted a growing trend of people gathering on the streets outside the bars. She said this is a very "disturbing" trend. She stated that she held a meeting with members of the Bar Owners Association on this situation, and they are on board with maintaining protocols within their establishments. However, it was noted that bar owners do not have jurisdiction outside their establishments, such as the pavements. She is also discouraging bar hopping. Dr. St. Bernard stated that members of the Protective Services within County Caroni are also affected by the surge, with 41 Primary contacts, 154 Secondary contacts, and 51 Tertiary contacts being generated. Some people are refusing to be swabbed even though they are living with a COVID-19 Positive person. Dr. St. Bernard said these individuals do not give a clear reason for refusing to be swabbed. The high number of cases in County Caroni is affecting business continuity and has the potential to affect school operations, especially for those who will be writing exams soon. So far, one student in County Caroni has been quarantined.