Dominica has recorded another five cases of COVID-19 as the country continues its battle against the pandemic.
According to National Epidemiologist, Dr. Shallaudin Ahmed, the total number of confirmed cases has increased to 85 and the number of active cases is now thirteen.
“In total 72 cases have successfully recovered and there are no deaths to-date,” he said.
He stated that three of the new cases were identified through “rapid testing at the airport.”
“One case was detected through the routine day-5 testing at the quarantine facility and the fifth case was detected via our Pre-Travel screening,” he stated.
Dr. Ahmed also revealed that two of these cases are foreign nationals, and they are all asymptomatic, and a total of 20 contacts were identified for one of the index cases.
He said that three of the contacts are between the ages of “35 to 40 years,” and two others are “over 70 years.” He explained that in addition to contact tracing, the Ministry of Health plans to conduct screening for target populations.
“They are our elderly folks who are in nursing care facilities and selected areas that are considered hot zones,” Dr. Ahmed said.
He warned that if anyone is experiencing “a flu-like illness, they should contact their nearest healthcare facility for medical advice.”
“It is important to note that a person with COVID-19 may take 2 to 14 days to develop symptoms and could remain contagious for up to 10 days…remember precautionary measures for COVID and flu are the same,” he said.