Health
Deaths at Home & Abroad to COVID reports TCI Hospitals
By Dana Malcolm
Staff Writer
#TurksandCaicos, March 3, 2022 – “We will move forward as best as possible in the interim until we can get to a point where we’re treating it as a clinical disease rather than a pandemic…we’re constantly thinking about next steps.”
This is the government’s position on Covid-19 according to Health Minister Jamell Robinson. The position, announced by Robinson in a press conference Thursday morning, is reflective of how several western countries including the UK and the Dominican Republic are prepared to treat the pandemic, which has stymied economies and wearied the medical and health care sector.
Updates on the Covid-19 statistics from January’s fourth COVID surge were provided by Dr Denise Brathwaite
As evidenced by the COVID dashboard there has been a dramatic fall in cases and hospitalizations are down with zero patients currently admitted. In comparison to January which had 2,185 cases.
During the spike, 49 people were admitted to hospital. Forty-five of those cases occurred in January and six of those admitted to hospital, died due to the virus.
Thirty-seven patients recovered and were discharged from the InterHealth Canada run facilities located in Providenciales and Grand Turk.
Eleven people who presented and were found to be positive for the coronavirus, had to be medically evacuated in the Treatment Abroad Program. Five of those recovered and returned to the islands; sadly, six passed away overseas.
Only two per cent of the admitted patients were boosted, informed Dr. Braithwaite-Tenant in her report. Sixty three per cent of patients were vaccinated and un-boosted. Thirty-five per cent were unvaccinated and the majority of those infected were of working age.
The CEO of the Hospitals addressed the facilities’ position on therapeutics as the country leans closer to treating COVID as an endemic but the progress remains as it did since July 2020 when dexamethasone was employed as a therapeutic.
“There is ongoing review of real life data… we have engaged through the Ministry of Health, Public Health England to share their data especially on the post Omicron impact on these therapeutics. Once we have any updates we will provide an update.”
At this time, Public Health England has approved at least five therapeutics for use in the United Kingdom.