Covid 19 update - Ghana
There has been many news on the spike these few past days. After the lockdown lift in the Ghana, most of the private sectors workers are back to their shops to operate. Many are excited about the changes as they were in high anticipation for a better outcome. But then, we will have to analyse whether the halt of the lockdown was in the right direction. I believe there is a big tol on the government, the president in particular as he is to steer the wheels of this nation to a safe haven. Once again i bring you updates as to how Ghana is managing Covid 19 cases.
One of the biggest challenges in battling Covid 19 infection is patient determination and isolation from the public. Infact, it is the only know method of treatment and the sure way to prevent spread. The challenge in this method of approach is the lack of adequate resources to test the entire populace for those who are infected with the infection. The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and Incas Diagnostics, a diagnostic company in Kumasi, have created a Rapid Diagnostic Test (RDT) kit to help test for the novel coronavirus. With this rapid diagnostic test, it is believed that we can combat the infection in real time, thereby ensuring early isolation of patients to prevent more community spread. The test kit takes 15-20minutes to complete as compaired to the 6-12 hours of genome sequencing. The test is extremely rapid and it is able to detect individuals who have been infected but are not showing any signs of infection and those showing signs as well. Its a big advancement if the test kits pass all the optimization test being conducted right now at the Noguchi Research Center and Ghana Food and Drugs Board Ministry. This is a step into the light.
There is more great news. The new month brought gifts also to the Citizens of Ghana. The president has reduced the price of all electricity consumption bills to 50% and it started today. Each house is supposed to pay half of the price of the amount of electricity units it consumed for the full amount of units last month. And i went to get mine. The previous month, we consume 320 Kilowatts which was priced at 230Gh, This month for the same amount of kilowatss, i payed 124 Ghana cedis. If you are in Ghana worry little about electricity for now as the Government has got you covered.
I cannot conclude without letting you know about the changes in case incidents and fatalities that has accured these past few days. As at 2nd May 2019, Ghana has recorded a total case number of 2169. with 18 deaths and 229 recoveries. Statistics shows that more men are infected than women and yet there are more females in Ghana than males. Could it be that, men are predisposed to the infection? Its a question to be answered with research. Below is the breakdown of cases across the region
(Case Count from Highest to Lowest)
Greater Accra Region - 1,852
Ashanti Region - 117
Eastern Region - 87
Central Region - 21
Oti Region - 19
Upper East Region - 19
Volta Region - 16
Northern Region - 13
Upper West Region - 10
Western Region - 9
The jump from 1550 cases to 2169 cases is alarming but then expected as the curve in other countries read exponential increase. With the new developments, it is the hope of us all that we all survive to tell the tales of this pandemic.
Protect yourself and stay safe. Have a blessed day