A health expert has warnedof the increase in the number of new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19)as some Ghanaians fail to adhere to the safety protocols to combat the virus.
The warning comes at the wake of applicants of the new voter’s identification card blatantly defying social distancing and face covering rules.
Dr Michael Boadu,a physician consultant at Kings Memorial Hospital, who spoke in a telephone interview with theGhanaianTimes, noted thatthe defiant act could lead to more people being infected and infecting others around them as well.
He said those who violated socialdistancing measures generally fell into three categories, they either “don’t know, don’t care, or are defiant” adding that “young people must realise their acts of defiance can have disastrous results and cause the disease to be spread among themselves or their loved ones with the consequences unbearable.”
The health expert explained that”while the numbers of recoveries of those infected with COVID-19 were encouraging, the goal is for transmissions in the local community to go down to single digits, or even zero, only then can things go back to normalcy.”
Dr Boadu admonished individuals to maintain a distance of at least two metres from every other individual and no person shouldbe within a group of 10 or more people.
Speaking on the mass COVID-19 testing of workers in organisations, he called for mass testing ofworkers to identify and isolate asymptomatic patients to prevent the recurrence of mass infection in companies operating in the industries andharbours.
Dr Boadu urged companies to urgently embark on such testing to avoid having a large number of their workers contracting the virus unknowingly and reminded companies within the hub to strictly adhere to the COVID-19 protocols including the Ghana Employers Association to ensure that their members followed the procedures.
“Again, Inspectorate Department of Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations must ensure that industries within the enclave follow the COVID-19 protocols to curtail the spread of the coronavirus,” he added.
BY BENEDICTA GYIMAAH FOLLEY
