Cases said coming from all over parish
Suspected cases of the dreaded Chikungunya virus are growing rapidly in St. Ann and the latest figures — up to Saturday, September 6 — show that forty one cases were reported to the St Ann Health Department. There is a difference between reported and confirmed cases, the latter taking some time following tests. The alarming situation in St Ann was highlighted by acting Medical Officer of Health for St. Ann, Dr. Francine Phillips-Kelly, while presenting the monthly health report during last Thursday’s general monthly meeting of the St Ann Parish Council. Dr. Phillips-Kelly said in recent weeks the cases have been coming in fast and furious and that the staff was now finding it difficult to cope with the situation.
“In the span of a week we might see as many as two dozen cases and they are coming from all over the parish,” she said. Dr. Phillips Kelly admits that the Health Dept. is not able to respond as quickly as it should to these suspected cases of Chic V due to the growing number of cases and the limited resources. She said that although the situation is some cause for concern, the public needs to be mindful that the country is also experiencing an outbreak of dengue which is transmitted by the same type of mosquito, and also that the symptoms of dengue and Chic v are similar and one could be mistaken for the other.
The MOH said teams of health workers are out in various communities educating residents about the disease and offering critical advice on how to cope.“Since the beginning of July our vector teams have going out into the various communities and all the cases that are suspected, the communities from which those persons are from, are ones tested first,” she added.
