Non-adherence to Covid-19 precautions could leave Guyana with fewer frontline workers - Deputy CMO

Non-adherence to Covid-19 precautions could leave Guyana with fewer frontline workers – Deputy CMO

Jun 25, 2020 News

“Persons are taking this thing for granted; people are still travelling, going to parties and not using masks. They are even forgetting to social distance.”

“We do not have a reserve of retired nurses and doctors that can be called out to work because they are more vulnerable to contracting the virus because of their age.”

With the recent spike of Covid-19 cases the Deputy Chief Medical Officer (DCMO), Dr. Karen Boyle is warning that persons who are ignoring Covid-19 precautions are putting a strain on Guyana’s medical system.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr. Karen Boyle

Dr. Boyle said that the pandemic has already placed additional pressure on the nation’s medical workforce.
This is because it is mandatory that a health worker who comes into contact or treats an infected person be isolated for 14 days.
During this period, there is need for a staffer to replace that individual, and the cycle goes on.
“In order to maintain staff, we have to rotate them regularly. We do this by sending some to areas where there are few or no Covid-19 infections,” Dr. Boyle said.
However, the recent spike has raised some concerns that the situation may be getting out of hand.
Within the last seven days, Guyana’s positive Covid-19 cases has jumped from 171 to 209.
This means that within the last week, 38 new cases have been reported.
If this trend continues, according to Dr. Boyle, the medical workforce will be affected greatly.
She noted that Guyana cannot depend on retired nurses and doctors.
“We do not have a reserve of retired nurses and doctors that can be called out to work because they are more vulnerable to contracting the virus because of their age.”
Questioned as to what might be the cause for the recent rise in cases, the DCMO responded that persons are not adhering to the Covid-19 guidelines.
“Persons are taking this thing for granted; people are still travelling, going to parties and not using masks. They are even forgetting to social distance.”
Dr. Boyle even told Kaieteur News that the Ministry is spending money to procure tests and even investing in transportation for these tests to be available in all regions.
Despite this, persons are refusing to be tested while others don’t even want to be isolated. She asserted that if there is no responsibility taken by citizens, then there is not much that can be done to avoid the situation spiraling out of control.