The Korle Bu Teaching Hospital has reported another case of suspected coronavirus infection, Thursday afternoon.
JoyNews’ sources say doctors at the country’s biggest referral hospital are currently in a state of panic over the suspected case.
In the wake of the outbreak in China last year, the doctors criticised health authorities for poorly preparing Korle Bu Teaching Hospital to deal with the coronavirus infection in Ghana.
Early last month, two suspected cases of coronavirus reported at the same facility prompted a similar situation of chaos. The two cases tested negative, however, they exposed gaps in the country’s preparedness to stem a possible outbreak.
The latest suspected coronavirus patient, a lady who arrived in Ghana recently from New Jersey in the United States, is currently being held at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.
Sources say the lady passed the mandatory checks on the thermal screens at Kotoka International Airport because she was on pain medications.
Doctors explain that when a person is on pain medications their temperature is suppressed.
The thermal screens are meant to detect high body temperatures associated with persons with a possible coronavirus infection and other diseases.
JoyNews sources say on Thursday morning the lady reported sick at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital but doctors at the time did not think it was a possible case of coronavirus.
However, later in the day, her temperature shot up – some 40 degrees Celsius — and she started showing other signs associated with the fast-spreading COVID-19.
Sources at the hospital said doctors then started probing the case further and learnt that on her flight to Ghana, the lady coughed a lot on the plane and even at some point used her face mask.
Doctors now started applying the Ghana Health Service (GHS) case definition for COVID-19 and found that she checked a lot of the symptoms associated with the disease.
But doctors say since 4:00 pm all the emergency numbers dedicated to a possible case of coronavirus have been unresponsive.
The lady is currently being held at a ward in the hospital.
Doctors who have come into contact with the woman have also self-quarantined themselves.
Blood samples of the suspected coronavirus patient will be sent to the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research for testing.