Within the next two weeks, Barbados will have the capacity to test for the presence of the 2019 novel Coronavirus.
According to the Barbados advocate, this assurance had been given by the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kenneth George highlighting that this was important as no other Caribbean island had this capability.
He stated that “CARPHA at the moment cannot test for the virus and they have personally intervened with PAHO to make sure that this is fast-tracked. He added that they will be the first island in the region doing this.
George pointed out that as the island was in the midst of an economic recovery programme, funds were not readily available adding that they had issues with getting the quarantine stations up and have taken an active approach as to how they are going to solve this.
Speaking on Sunday night’s episode of The People’s Business, he explained while there were quarantine stations at the ports of entry, these were only equipped to handle four to six persons and not for the 14-day incubation period of the coronavirus.
