Minister for Health and Social Development Honourable Carvin Malone stated during a COVID-19 update that several measures have been put in place by the BVI Health Services Authority (BVIHSA) to fight the Coronavirus.

Honourable Malone said these measures include a dedicated home visiting service that will now allow for COVID-19 testing to be done in private homes and a designated screening and assessment area located outside the Emergency Room of the Dr. D. Orlando Smith Hospital, which has the capacity to treat 20 to 30 mild COVID-19 cases per hour.

The Health Minister also stated that the medical and surgical wards have been relocated to the 5^th floor of the hospital which has allowed for the set up of a dedicated special care unit on the 3^rd floor to isolate and treat COVID-19 patients requiring hospitalization or isolation.

In his report, Minister Malone said that he is pleased with the BVI Health Services Authority as they continue to keep pace and implement measures to ensure a high level of readiness to meet the new challenges presented by COVID-19.

“The BVI Health Services Authority has   revised workflows, guidelines and protocols in all clinical areas to ensure adequate COVID-19 prevention measures.  They have conducted extensive training in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), and provided psycho-social support to healthcare workers,” Minister Malone disclosed.

The minister noted that Government has made significant investments towards the procurement of a large stock of PPE, ventilators and other medical equipment.

Honourable Malone also revealed that the BVIHSA has implemented a tele-medicine and an online prescription re-fill and delivery system.  Persons can access the prescription refill system by emailing prescriptions to pharmacy@bvihsa.vg or via Whatsapp at 440-1726.  A phone number and address should be included with every prescription.

As of today, 189 persons are currently on quarantine and one person in isolation at the Dr. D. Orlando Smith Hospital. Since the last update, an additional nine samples were tested by CARPHA. Eight of those samples were negative for the virus that causes COVID-19 and one additional positive case was detected. This brings the total number of COVID-19 cases detected in the BVI to date to six, with three recoveries, one death, and two active cases. Ten additional samples are expected to be transported to CARPHA today for confirmatory testing.

While other initiatives are being rolled out on a daily basis to ensure that the Territory’s health system is at its highest attainable state of preparedness, Minister Malone continues to urge the community to do their part to lower their vulnerability to COVID-19.  Persons experiencing a fever with cough or difficulty breathing, or other respiratory symptoms are encouraged to call the Medical Hotline at 852-7650.

BVI Health Services Authority is committed to delivering excellent, compassionate, client centered healthcare across the Territory.

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