About a year after the World Health Organisation declared an end to the COVID-19 global health emergency, the Ghana Health Service is raising concerns over new infections in the country.
Ghana has recorded 31 new COVID-19 cases, prompting calls for enhanced COVID-19 vaccination to protect the public against potentially severe illness.
“Past week or so, we were recording some significant numbers up to about 30 or 31, but over the past three/four days, I think we have come down,” the Programme Manager of the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) at the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Kwame Amponsa-Achiano, said in a media interview.
COVID-19 Statistics
Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation’s COVID-19 dashboard shows Ghana has recorded 93 cases of COVID-19 in the last 28 days.
A screengrab of the WHO COVID-19 dashboard
Globally, more than 7 million people have died due to the disease, and more than 775 million cases have also been recorded since outbreak started in late 2019.
Proactive measures to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 disease
The Ghana Health Service as part of the measures to curb the spread has announced May 5 to May 9, 2024, for a nationwide vaccination exercise.
“From 5th to 9th May, we are going to do another exercise of COVID vaccination… So we are doing the national COVID-19 vaccination as part of our strategies to reduce COVID to the barest minimum,” Dr Amponsa-Achiano said.
COVID-19 symptoms
The most common symptoms are fever, chills, and sore throat.
The less common symptoms include muscle aches and heavy arms or legs severe fatigue or tiredness runny or blocked nose, or sneezing, headache, sore eyes, dizziness, new and persistent cough, tight chest or chest pain, shortness of breath, hoarse voice, numbness or tingling, appetite loss, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain or diarrhoea, loss or change of sense of taste or smell and difficulty sleeping.
People with the following symptoms should seek immediate medical attention:
Difficulty breathing, especially at rest, or unable to speak in sentences
Confusion
Drowsiness or loss of consciousness
Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
Skin being cold or clammy, or turning pale or a bluish colour
Loss of speech or movement.
As part of the preventive measures, the World Health Organisationrecommends the following;
Avoid crowds and keep a safe distance from others, even if they don’t appear to be sick;
Wear a properly fitted mask if you feel sick, have been close to people who are sick if you are at high risk, or in crowded or poorly ventilated areas;
Clean your hands frequently with alcohol-based hand rub or soap and water;
Cover your mouth and nose with a bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze;
Dispose off used tissues right away clean your hands; and
If you develop symptoms or test positive for COVID-19, self-isolate until you recover
