TCI: Covid-19 testing slumps, 6.5% positive

#TurksandCaicos, April 5, 2021 – In the past seven days, there have been 190 PCR tests completed by the Turks and Caicos Islands National Public Health Lab; 12 samples returned positives for Covid-19 which is around 6.5% confirmed to have contracted the virus. 

While this scale looks good, testing figures are slumping; the peak for the week at only 87 PCR tests performed in a single day.  

Still, the Ministry of Health is forging ahead with a vigorous plan to make testing available in both the more populated and the isolated islands.

The schedule included five islands and as many as 10 sites during the month of April.

PCR testing in Grand Turk is every Tuesday between 2 and 4pm.  Testing in South Caicos, every Tuesday between 9am and noon.  North Caicos testing is every Monday from 9am to noon at the Kew Clinic, Every Thursday between 9am and noon at the Bottle Creek Clinic and every Monday and Thursday from 9am to noon at the Middle Caicos clinic.  Providenciales, testing is set for every Tuesday at the National Stadium on Venetian Road between 9am and noon; with the mobile clinic moving around throughout the month.  April 8 at Graceway IGA on Leeward Highway… April 15 at Sam’s Plaza Down town Provo; on April 22 at Sunny Foods in Five Cays and on April 29 at Sunny Foods in Blue Hills.

The hope is that more people will come out to be tested, given that vaccination is also seeing lackluster support particularly from more indigenous community groups. 

Currently, TCI is with 50 active cases of the coronavirus; two people are hospitalised. The island of Providenciales has 36 confirmed cases, North Caicos has four, South Caicos with six and Grand Turk with four people with Covid-19 on record.

Resorts cumulative testing is nearing 40,000; some 38,885 rapid antigen tests have been performed reveals the April 4th dashboard.