Published 24th November 2020
Buckie Got It,
Basseterre St. Kitts and Nevis News Source
MEDICAL CHIEF OF STAFF AT JNF GENERAL HOSPITAL WARNS AGAINST COVID-19 FATIGUE
Basseterre, St. Kitts, November 24, 2020 (SKNIS): ‘Why do we always have to wear a mask? Why are we demanding a negative PCR test prior to arrival? Why are we insisting on a 14-day quarantine on arrival when other countries have a shorter period?’
These are some of the questions that are posed again and again to health authorities in St. Kitts and Nevis as the country continues to successfully manage the coronavirus pandemic. Most experts refer to this as COVID-19 fatigue as persons grow weary of restrictions imposed because of the pandemic.
Dr Cameron Wilkinson, Medical Chief of Staff of the J. N. France General Hospital said that in spite of the daily questions, the health and safety protocols will remain in place to protect the population from the deadly disease. He made the statement on Tuesday, November 24, 2020, following the announcement of two new imported cases of COVID-19 into the Federation.
Case 21 and 22 travelled to St. Kitts on Saturday November 21, 2020, and were immediately placed in quarantine following transportation to an approved quarantine facility. They are now in isolation. St. Kitts and Nevis now has three active cases of COVID-19 since the border reopened on October 31.
Dr Wilkinson is urging residents of St. Kitts and Nevis to remain vigilant in following the non-pharmaceutical measures of sanitizing hands, physically distancing and wearing facemasks as they remain extremely effective in protecting persons from contracting COVID-19. Avoiding large crowds is also a key recommendation.
“We are still in the middle of a global crisis,” Dr Wilkinson stated at an emergency COVID-19 briefing of the National Emergency Operations Centre on November 24. “We insist on these standards because they are based on science and have been proven to be effective. Just because one doesn’t like the protocols and the restrictions does not mean there is not a problem that still needs our undivided attention.”
He added, “These protocols are the reason why we have remained a country with a low case count thus far, with no current hospitalizations, and no deaths to date, and has made us an attractive destination to date.”
Medical Chief of Staff Dr. Wilkinson said that the “Corridor of Containment” is the term used to described the robust health and safety protocols governing the arrival of returning nationals and visitors covering procedures at the R. L. Bradshaw International Airport, transportation to the designated quarantine facility, and quarantine rules.
