3 children positive for covid19 stable at Couva hospital

Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram says the three children warded at the Couva Hospital are stable.

Speaking at the virtual covid19 press conference on Saturday morning, he said two were suffering from multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) and one was immuno-compromised. He added that they were not in the high dependency unit or the intensive care unit.

Parasram noted that TT has seen 20 MIS-C cases, four of which were positive for covid19.

On Wednesday, Dr Joanne Paul, head of the Paediatric Emergency Department, Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, said two babies, a five-month-old and a six-month-old, tested positive for covid19 in Tobago, but they were doing well.

Parasram went on to say that people younger than 19 accounted for 12.78 per cent of positive cases.

Dr Jeanine St Bernard, County Medical Officer of Health for Caroni, gave some advice on what adults should do to protect children.

She said adults must wash their hands regularly and ensure children did the same, teach children to practise cough and sneeze etiquette, limit in-person play time by encouraging them to connect virtually and supervise them when online or on phone calls, ensure those few they interact with in person also practise preventative measures, and to let children play outdoors where they have fresh air and more room to physically distance themselves.

She warned parents to be careful with whom they leave their children, and to postpone visits to elderly relatives.

“Please do not take your kids with you shopping at the grocery and the malls if you can help it. Avoid running several errands whereby you are visiting several stores, groceries, hardware shops. Remember, the less interaction that your kids have with other people, the better for them.”

She suggested that, on arriving home, people should throw away disposable face masks or put cloth face masks to wash, wash their hands, and change clothes before greeting members of the household.