TRELAWNY, Jamaica — The Trelawny Health Authority yesterday revealed that the first case of COVID-19 has been identified at the Trelawny Infirmary in Falmouth, which houses some 54 residents.

“We have recently identified a case at the Trelawny Infirmary among the residents… quite recently as in yesterday (Wednesday night),” confirmed Dr Diahann Dale, medical officer of health for Trelawny, who is also the public health doctor for the public health team that is responsible for overseeing the COVID-19 response in the parish.

She added: “The infirmary is a place that we maintain very close watch over, looking at what is happening with both the staff and the residents. So yes, as happens elsewhere… but this is the first case in Trelawny identifying a positive case of COVID among residents at the infirmary.”

When contacted, chairman of the Trelawny Municipal Corporation (TMC), Councillor C Junior Gager, revealed that another resident who has since showed symptoms of the respiratory disease at the facility has since been isolated. He revealed that the municipal corporation and the health department have partnered to undertake a deep cleaning exercise at the facility, which is managed by the municipal corporation.

“All measures have been stepped up …isolation centre is now up and running. The ministry of health is now testing everyone. We have one case confirmed and another showing symptoms. So that one person (showing symptom) has been isolated and we are now in the process of doing a deep cleaning…. sanitisation of the whole place,” Gager said.

Since the first case of COVID-19 on the island in March 2020, the corporation implemented several preventative measures at the Infirmary, aimed at preventing an outbreak. These protocols are in keeping with those outlined by the Ministry of Health and Wellness and endorsed by the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development.

A number of hand wash sinks and sanitising stations have been installed at strategic locations on the compound. No visitor is being allowed on the premises while members of staff must undergo temperature checks and sanitisation upon entry.

Meanwhile, speaking to reporters in Falmouth yesterday, Dr Dale bemoaned that Trelawny is the leading parish per capita with 18 COVID-related deaths.

Yesterday the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the island stood at 359.

“So far as a parish we have recorded 18 deaths that are confirmed to be COVID-19 related and with that in comparison to the rest of the parishes in the country, Trelawny has the highest number of cases per 100,000 population,” she lamented. 

“So when you look at small Trelawny and compare it to the number of persons who have died from COVID, it is quite high.”

She urged members of the public to join the public health department in the fight to contain the spread of the disease, adding that individuals should ensure that their relatives visiting from abroad adhere to the established protocols.

“The health authorities cannot do it on our own. We have the persons who are coming from overseas and they are not maintaining quarantine and their breaches of quarantine is being facilitated by their relatives. And then who tells? they come and they go and then they leave the COVID with you that they brought. Bear in mind many of our visitors, including our relatives that come from other countries to our shores, they are coming from countries with much greater levels of COVID-19 than we are having. So the risk of them having it and bring it to share among you and your family is great,” she noted. 

For his part, speaking yesterday at the regular monthly meeting of the TMC, Gager, who is also the mayor of Falmouth, said that with the spike in COVID-19 cases across the island, including Trelawny, “we need to tighten our mechanisms and do all we can to stop the spread of the disease”.

“There was a time when as a parish we prided ourselves as one of the two parishes to have no COVID cases, at a time when other parishes counts were rising,” Gager added.

Horace Hines