THA sets up coronavirus taskforce

An inter-sectorial taskforce has been established by the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Division of Health, Wellness and Family Development to help contain and mitigate the coronavirus.

A release from the Division on Tuesday said the taskforce includes Acting County Medical Officer of Health, Director of the Tobago Emergency Management Agency (TEMA), the acting medical chief of staff, the acting general manager primary care and the nursing managers for primary and secondary care.

The release said the taskforce has been mandated to review the preparedness and mitigation plans of the health sector, guide the response to covid19 and make recommendations for appropriate public health measures before and during the course of the disease.

It added that there are three possible responses to covid19 – alert, containment, and mitigation – noting that Tobago is in the alert phase, where the disease is overseas, adding that the island’s current response is to detect and minimise the importation of the disease.

Additionally, the task force is responsible for ensuring an adequate supply of the relevant personal protective equipment for staff; training and retraining staff in infection, prevention and control procedures; establishing procedures and adherence to protocols for care and management of suspected, probable and confirmed cases as directed by the World Health Organization; internal and public education awareness campaigns; identifying and outfitting additional isolation spaces; outfitting and staffing one or more health centres to manage cases during the containment phase; and collaborating with local, regional and international teams in a timely and effective response.

The division said there are no confirmed cases of covid19 in Tobago.

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"THA sets up coronavirus taskforce"

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