Ahafo yields to first COVID-19 case

The Ahafo Region has recorded its first case of the coronavirus (COVID-19) infection, making it the last of the 16 regions in the country to have confirmed cases.

The patient is a 30-year-old man whose condition was traced to a female contact from a neighbouring community in the Ashanti Region.

Confirmation

The Ahafo Regional Director of Health, Dr Boakye Boateng, confirmed the issue in a telephone interview, and explained that the victim was currently at an isolation centre in Goaso, the regional capital.

Dr Boateng explained that the cause of the infection was traced to a pregnant woman who was referred from Tepa in the Ahafo-Ano District in the Ashanti Region to the St Elizabeth Hospital at Hwidiem in the Asutifi South District in the Ahafo Region about two weeks ago.

He indicated that the expectant mother was diagnosed as having contracted COVID-19 after she had been referred to the St Elizabeth Hospital.

He said the 30-year-old man was one of the people who came into contact with the pregnant woman when she was referred to hospital at Hwidiem.

"Results from the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine (KCCR) released on Monday confirm that the Ahafo Region now has its first case of the disease," Dr Boateng stressed.

He said so far contact tracers had identified 12 people who had come into contact with the victim.

The samples of those 12 persons, he said, had been sent for testing at KCCR and had since been advised to strictly observe the protocols until the results were released to know their fate.

Calm

Dr Boateng called on people in the region not to panic but to remain calm and continue to observe all the COVID-19 safety protocols to limit their chances of infection.

He also appealed to them to refrain from stigmatising COVID-19 victims and their families, explaining that such a negative attitude would make it difficult for the government to successfully implement protocols it had put in place to contain the spread of the disease.