40-year-old teacher dies as Berbice battles to subdue 109 active COVID-19 cases

May 16, 2021 News

By Malisa Playter-Harry

Regional Health Officer, Dr. Vishalya Sharma.

Kaieteur News – A 40-year-old teacher from Corriverton, Berbice, has been listed among the latest COVID-19 fatalities emerging from Region Six. This was confirmed by the Regional Health Officer, Dr. Vishalya Sharma, during a press briefing held at the Regional Democratic Council’s boardroom in New Amsterdam last Friday. Dr. Sharma disclosed that the death was reported last Thursday night and has increased the Region’s COVID-19 death toll for the month of May to three.
“Looking at deaths in April, Region Six was hardest hit with COVID-19. We lost 11 persons, this is far too many and we can’t allow this to continue,” said Dr. Sharma.
As at Friday, the RHO revealed that there were 109 active cases in the Region, a figure that has been fluctuating for the past three weeks. This, she said, coincides with the third wave happening nationally. New Amsterdam has recorded 33 positive cases, with the majority coming from Angoy’s Avenue, while Corriverton has recorded 11, Orealla with four and Corentyne 46. The areas on the Corentyne with active cases include Kildonan, Rose Hall, Manchester, Fyrish, Limlair and Bloomfield. These, the doctor said, have not been traditional areas where COVID-19 has been recorded.
Referencing the number of active cases, the RHO said, “for the past three weeks it has been that way and we have been trying to get this down but it has been a challenge.”
Dr. Sharma noted that currently resources are dwindling but the health teams in the Region have been working around the clock. In this regard, she added, everyone has to play a responsible role in the fight against the virus.
“What we have noticed in the past month, because of the changes in clinical presentation, we would have had to shift a lot the way we manage, the way we approach and the way we deal with our patients to improve our patient outcomes. We have done 1,500 rapid tests regionally and we are also seeing patients from Region Five,” Dr. Sharma said. Over 2,000 persons have thus far been swabbed for COVID-19 in the Region and of that amount, Dr. Sharma said, 929-tested positive. To date 24 persons have died and there have been 779 recoveries, she informed.