Health Minister Urges Continued Adherence to COVID-19 Protocols

Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, is urging Jamaicans to continue observing the COVID-19 prevention and control protocols, as the country experiences an increase in the positivity rate.

“Although the COVID-19 numbers are relatively low, a continued increase in the positivity rate may result in increased numbers, including hospital numbers,” Dr. Tufton told the House of Representatives today (July 11).

The Minister reported that overall, the actual numbers are not showing a consistent increase. Over the past four weeks, there have been an average of 87 confirmed cases with the average seven-day positivity rate being 22 per cent.

Dr. Tufton noted that vulnerable persons, such as the elderly and those with comorbid illnesses, are particularly at-risk for severe illnesses, and as such, should adhere to regular handwashing and sanitising, the wearing of mask, and covering the mouth and nose when sneezing and coughing in public spaces.

“So, the wearing of the mask is still recommended, particularly if you feel vulnerable or you have symptoms,” Dr. Tufton said.

He continues to encourage eligible persons to take the influenza and COVID-19 vaccines especially the vulnerable populations, which include the elderly, the young, pregnant women, and our healthcare workers.

The Minister told the House that the circulating variant is the highly transmissible OMICRON, with the last batches of genomic sequencing done on samples collected in March and April showing that subvariants XBB.1.5 and BQ.1.1 were the most prevalent.

Minister Tufton said that across the nation’s hospitals, COVID-19 admissions are generally low, with less than 20 per cent of isolation spaces occupied.

An average of 100 inpatients are recorded daily, which has been the case since January this year and includes both suspected and confirmed cases.

“The proportion of confirmed cases, however, has shown an increase over the last month from 12 confirmed cases on June 12 to 35 on July 10. Of that number, 13 were moderately ill and one, critically ill. There were no severely ill patients,” he said.

Overall, the Minister said that hospitals are experiencing an increase in admissions, with the Southern Regional Health Authority (SRHA) comprising Clarendon, Manchester and St. Elizabeth at 149 per cent of capacity, and the Western Regional Health Authority (WRHA), which entails Trelawny, St. James, Westmoreland and Hanover, at 94 per cent.

The South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA), which serves residents of St. Catherine, St. Thomas, Kingston and St. Andrew; and the North East Regional Health Authority (NERHA), covering St. Ann, St. Mary and Portland, are at 68 per cent and 63 per cent, respectively.

In the case of SERHA, however, the Spanish Town Hospital and the Kingston Public Hospital are between 95 and 100 per cent of capacity.

As at July 10, 2023, Jamaica has recorded a total of 155,455 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 3,586-related deaths. Globally, as at July 6, 2023, there were 767,726,861 confirmed cases and 6,948,764 deaths.