IF to date patient zero cannot be found, is that not the definition of community spread?
This is one of the questions posed by the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) following the near three-hour address to the nation by Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley, and key Cabinet and health officials on the approach being taken to address the upsurge in COVID-19 cases in Barbados following what was described as a super spreader event on Boxing Day.
In a statement issued by the DLP, it was stated that the main concern by the general public was the continuous “importation” of the coronavirus and the breaching of COVID protocols by visitors to the island. “We are no wiser, being left with more questions than answers. There were few if any concrete takeaways from the almost three-hour talk fest.”
The DLP posited that what seems clear is that there is no interest by Government to tempor-arily close the borders.
It is against this backdrop that the DLP posed a number of questions to the COVID-19 team, first of which was Government’s unwillingness to accept recommendations by the Barbados Association of Medical Practitioners.
“The Ministry of Health admitted there are many varying protocols applied in different countries. Although the WHO is the recommended policy entity, countries retain the right to modify based on their individual circumstances and basic common sense.”
The DLP also queried the mode of transportation to be used to transport visitors to quarantine facilities after arrival at the airport and what systems are currently in place to monitor visitor arrivals at Port St. Charles and other ports of entry.
“What timeline has been set for the Ministry of Tourism to complete the task of choosing the hotel stock for the segregation of persons at different stages of the protocol process?”
The DLP also questioned: “Who will ensure that guests physically stay in their rooms while in quarantine? Electronic bracelets are not substitutions to physical security presence at quarantine facilities. Why is it taking the authorities so long to ensure all guest accommodations put adequate and efficient security in place to control and mitigate against the risk of visitors breaching protocol? Given that the Bluetooth range is 20ft, what is the plan for activating and monitoring the bracelets?”
It was acknowledged that while the Government is trying to cope with this current situation at hand, it should be proactively putting systems in place to mitigate against the spread of the disease in critical and vulnerable areas within the society.
“These concerns need to be addressed. We continue to beseech citizens to follow the COVID protocols and safeguard themselves and their families,” the DLP said.