Dr. Kofi Issah, Bono Regional Director of Health speaking to the media yesterday
The Ghana Health Service has dispelled rumours that some people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Bono, Bono East and Ahafo regions, and has therefore asked the public to discard that information.
At a media briefing in Sunyani, the Bono Regional Directorate of the Ghana Health Service was emphatic that not a single positive case of the disease has so far been recorded in any of the three regions. He said 24 out of 29 suspected cases have all proven negative while the remaining five are still being tested at KCCR, Kumasi.
“Of all the samples that we have tested, we have received results of 24 of them and all of them are negative…. we are yet to receive the results of the remaining five. I’ll want to say categorically that Bono Region, as well as Ahafo and Bono East regions have recorded no positive case of COVID-19,” Dr John Ekow Otto, the Deputy Bono Regional Director of Public Health, stated.
Surveillance
Dr Otto said the Ghana Health Service, in collaboration with the Ghana Immigration Service and other relevant stakeholders, has stepped up surveillance along border towns and other parts of the region and also following up on all alerts and rumours as they pop up.
“We are collaborating with the Immigration Service to ensure that all persons who come into the country through unapproved routes and also persons who came into the country since 9th March through our airports are followed up to ensure that none of them has any ill-health.”
“We have our contact tracers who are in all our sub-districts and are helping with investigations on alerts and contacts that we have received so far,” he further said.
Dr Otto reminded the public to observe “the rules or protocols that we have spelt out to help us all protect ourselves from being infected with COVID-19.”
“We are encouraging everybody to, as much as possible, stay at home if you don’t have any business doing outside. We’re also encouraging you to continuously use soap to wash your hands under running water,” he said.
More testing
The Bono Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Kofi Issah, disclosed that there are currently 9,000 sputum collection containers available for Bono, Bono East and Ahafo regions, with 4,000 more on the way coming, which can aid the testing of any suspected case in the three regions.
Dr Kofi Issah stressed the need for the public to observe social distancing and the other protocols with seriousness to avoid the spread of the virus.
