Team returning from DR ‘very low risk’

| 03/03/2020 | 22 Comments

(CNS): A local sports group travelling back to the Cayman Islands from the Dominican Republic has a very low risk of exposure to the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, the Public Health Department determined after consulting with the team about its itinerary during their visit to the country. There has been just one confirmed case of COVID-19 in the Dominican Republic, which involved a person with a travel history to an affected region, according to Medical Officer of Health Dr Samuel Williams-Rodriguez.

Although he said the concerns were “understandable”, the risk of the exposure for the team was determined to be very low. However, Dr Williams-Rodriguez noted that with more confirmed cases within the region and the US, the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) has upgraded the risk of coronavirus disease transmission from low to ‘moderate to high’.

He said the Public Health Department is monitoring the global and regional COVID-19 situation carefully and that so far there are no reported cases of the coronavirus in the Cayman Islands. The department is also continuing to review of relevant plans and make adjustments where necessary to protect the health and safety of the residents of the Cayman Islands.

“We remain steadfast and vigilant, and continue to work with all local and regional stakeholders to ensure our borders are protected, reduce the chance for any imported case and to implement our plans with the highest efficiency to mitigate the impact of any virus spreading,” Dr Williams-Rodriguez said.

Residents are being reminded to “be in the know” about COVID-19 when traveling abroad and to practice general infection control measures such as frequent hand cleansing with soap and water or an alcohol based hand sanitizer, covering nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, avoiding close contact with people suffering from acute respiratory infections, and avoiding unprotected contact with farm or wild animals when travelling.

For more information on COVID-19, contact the Public Health Department on 345-244-2621 or visit the HSA website.


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Category: Health, Medical Health

Comments (22)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    Zero comments on the “Public forum to explore cancer in Cayman” article.
    Noone is concerned with cancer rates? I would have expected an overwhelming attendance.
    Humans are the weirdest creatures.

  2. John Smith says:

    Suggestion:
    Why don’t countries just quarantine people over 70 (most of whom are not part of the work force in any case) and those with susceptible pre existing conditions, until things die down, if you really want to keep the death rate down. Cause this isn’t going to be stopped going around the world.
    Just a thought.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Many over 70 live alone. Who is going to take care of them? Buy them groceries, medicine and check on them? The situation can last from months to years.

      In Florida it seems that healthcare idiots do everything to spread, not contain the virus. They hardly test anyone, one with symptoms has to go to a GP first, infecting everyone on his way including the doctor, then he is sent to a hospital where he infects many more, then he is refused testing and sent home. How many do you think he infected while going from one place to another? They also assume that a sick person is physically able to go anywhere. Many would say, screw this, and do nothing.
      Draconian measures in China so criticized by mass media is how you contain spreading.

  3. Anonymous says:

    Speaking of vigilance, logic should dictate that it is absolutely impossible for sequestered athletes in San Cristobal to have any probability of catching a virus from a visiting Italian tourist 145 km away in the eastern beach resort of La Romana. It’s not “very low risk’, it’s “zero risk”.

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    • Anonymous says:

      They used the same escalator in the airport. The means of transmission are not yet fully understood.

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      • Anonymous says:

        The Italian tourist arrived at airport a week or more after Cayman teams had been already playing their matches, and went to another part of the country. There was no opportunity for any exchange of COVID-19 molecules at departures and that science is well understood, thanks.

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      • Anonymous says:

        Kids used it first, and as far as we know, COVID-19 doesn’t go back in time.

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        • Anonymous says:

          The kids are leaving through the same airport. How long can the virus remain virulent on a door handle, handrail, carpet fibre? Please tell us, because the medical community does not yet know.

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          • Anonymous says:

            Latest information appears to be as long as 9 days on inert surfaces.

            In Israel today they have announced that everyone who simply walked into a football stadium through a particular gate must self quarantine for 14 days, all because a single person who used that entrance to the stadium has been determined to have COV 19.

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          • Anonymous says:

            Arrivals vs departures…facepalm

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          • Anonymous says:

            according to reports the virus can survive up to 9 days on the surface

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    • Anonymous says:

      I t would be far more interesting to assess the risk of a lawyer or hedge fund manager who had been travelling to Hong Kong or Singapore of being a transmission risk, but Alden knows better than to mess with the financial sector.

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    • Anonymous says:

      There is no such a thing as zero risk unless one lives, travels and works in an air tight bubble. Logic should dictate you this.

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      • Anonymous says:

        A virus still has to be in proximity to a potential host in order to be considered a risk. There was never any overlap with this tourist who left the arrivals area of the airport after kids had already arrived, and drove 145 km east of the city they were sequestered in.

  4. Anonymous says:

    No need for empty talks and imitation of activity. No country can escape coronavirus cases. Just accept it.
    Most cases are mild. Lets hope it will remain this way.

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