The Chairman for Coalition of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) on health, Dr Gabriel Benaku, has said the Health Ministry’s attempt to trace persons who might have been in contact with the two persons confirmed to have the deadly COVID-19 virus in Ghana is likely to be unsuccessful.
According to him, the Health Ministry will have a hard time tracing persons the two – a Ghanaian and a Turkish – might have come into contact with given the weak health system of the country.
Dr Benaku made the assertion in an interview on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem morning show on Friday.
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“Contact tracing is a very difficult task, especially when you have a weak public health system. And when your preparedness towards the prevention of a pandemic is not properly activated, it becomes nearly impossible to successfully trace people who might have come into contact with an infected person because even in the advanced countries where there is proper institutionalised health systems, contact tracing is very difficult,” he added.
Ghana on Thursday, March 12, 2020 through the Health Ministry, confirmed its first two cases of the novel covid-19.
One of the infected persons, a Ghanaian is reported to be a worker in Europe, the other person is believed to be a Turkish.
The duo arrived in the country a week ago and at the point of entry, were tested but didn’t show any symptom until some days later.