The
Minister of Health, Dr.Ahmad Lamin Samateh alongside senior health officials on
Tuesday visited Amdalai border post to assess the level of preparedness amid
the spread of the deadly coronavirus disease.
The
move comes after Senegal on Monday reported its first COVID-19 case, being the
second country in Sub-saharan Africa to confirm the contagious disease.
Speaking
to the journalists, Minister Samateh acknowledged the challenging times people
are currently working in since the first outbreak of the coronavirus disease in
China, which later spread globally.
He
explained that they had concerns before but that those concerns are more
evident now with Senegal’s reporting its first COVID 19 case on Monday.
On
the level of preparedness, Dr. Samateh highlighted that it is a continual
process and that’s why they are out to see firsthand what had already been done
at the border.
Minister
Samateh maintained that the good thing is that lot of works have been done by the
health officials.
“We’re
doing lot of activities to enhance our preparedness when it comes to dealing
with the coronavirus. We have improved on how people are going to be screened.”
Since
the first outbreak started in China, he went on, his Ministry and its partners
are doing all they could to sensitize the public and that alot of people now
know about the disease.
Reacting
to rumours trending on social media about the outbreak of COVID 19 in The
Gambia, the minister had this to say. “People should stop spreading rumours. We
should not say what we are not sure about.”
He
advised the public to be regularly washing their hands, adding that application
of alcohol hand sanitizers are equally important.
“We
should not touch our faces with unwashed hands, especially the eye, nose and
mouth.When we cough we should cover our mouth with tissues and one who sees
fever should seek for medical check-ups. These are very important and simple
measures that can protect all of us.”
Modou
Njai, the Director of Health Promotion at the Ministry of Health, also
expressed their resolve to strengthen the country’s borders as well as
strengthen cross border collaboration between the two countries.
“It’s
the only way we can move forward.We want to assure the public that the Ministry
is working everyday to ensure that we strengthen our borders. 11 public health
officers are now deployed at the Banjul International Airport to do screening
and advise people”
Regarding
plans for other border posts, Njai maintained that they are intensifying their
efforts to strengthen border posts with equipment and the materials they need
to carry out their work.
To
that end, he said the Ministry wants to do more training to create more
awareness about the pandemic.
“We
want people to use our 1025 which everybody can call to ask if they have
concerns or for things to be cleared. I advise people to also like our page on
Facebook for updates.”
Njai
equally appealed to people to report to the nearest health facilities, if any
strange signs are seen, further advising the public not to seek for traditional
treatment. When there are emergencies, some people want to disguise and deceive
people that they can do something or treat.
He
called on the support of the general public,further assuring that they will
continue their community based surveillance.
