Covid-19 update |14 April 2022
No new restriction measures for Easter holidays
No newrestrictions will be imposed during the Easter holidays but people are being urged to observe health measures already in place and to take responsibility of their health and protect their families from being infected with Covid-19.
As of yesterday, April 13, Seychelles had recorded 821 active Covid-19 cases out of which 712 cases are on Mahé, 71 on Praslin, 29 on La Digue and 9 on Desroches island.
So far, the cumulative cases total to 41,660 while 40,675 is the total number of recovered cases. The total number of people who have died of Covid-19 related illnesses is 164.
This latest update on the Covid-19 situation in the country was provided yesterday afternoon by Dr Jude Gédéon, the public health commissioner, and Dr Danny Louange, chief executive of the Health Care Agency (HCA) during their regular press conference held at the Sheikh Khalifa Diagnostic Centre.
“We have to continue to observe basic preventive measures; respect SOPs (standard operating procedures) and guidance at workplaces, schools, places of worship and places of leisure.If you have symptoms of Covid-19 and have been tested, wait for your result at home. This applies also for school children. Avoid gatherings and crowds and get vaccinated on time. If you are meeting with relatives do it responsibly and do not have a crowd at home. We do not want to have another surge next week. Dr Gédéon is not the police,he has his own responsibilities. Easter is a spiritual feast and we should celebrate it with devotion and in peace. If you have not prepared for and followed the Lent period, there is no need to celebrate Easter (Si ou pa’n fer Karenm pa bezwen fer Pak),”said Dr Gédéon.
Meanwhile, among the active cases, noted Dr Gédéon, 45 are gainful occupational permit (GOP) holders and nine are visitors.
“Most of the active cases are among the youth, young children and young adults. We have cases distributed over all the districts of the country and the districts with most cases are Au Cap, Anse Royale, Anse Aux Pins and Ile Persévérance with more than 50 cases. Since the end of March, we have seen an increase in community transmission and currently the rolling average stands at 79,” Dr Gédéon highlighted.
He went on to share that the February 2022 samples revealed to be 100% Omicron – Mahe, Praslin and La Digue (Predominantly BA.1) and the March 2022 samples tested from Mahe, Praslin and La Digue revealed to be 100% Omicron (98% BA.2 and 2 % BA.1) which is the main variant of concern in circulation.
Dr Gédéon also explained that the SARS COV-2 variant tracking in Seychelles which started with the wild, Alpha & Beta followed by a Delta surge. There was then a sustained community spread of mostly Delta followed by an Omicron surge. And now we have the Omicron BA.2 surge and this variant is more transmissible.
Dr Gédéon noted that there is a decrease in people getting their booster dose and this is causing further contamination. “We are calling on people to come forward for their vaccination and do not delay,”Dr Gédéon urged.
Dr Louange for his part gave an update on the number of Covid-19 patients following treatment at the Family Hospital.
“We have 12 patients with one in the intensive care unit (ICU) and two others between ICU and general ward. We also have one patient in the maternity ward. Seychelles Hospital is also catering for patients who are coming with positive symptoms. It is important and crucial for people with symptoms to immediately report to the hospital,” explained Dr Louange.
Dr Louange also shared that most of the medical services are back to normal and even the patients needing overseas treatment are going to Chennai, India. He also noted that the Health Care Agency (HCA) is making sure to have medicines available for the treatment of patients and that the current world situation coupled with the pandemic is making the situation more difficult to get the medicines on time.
“We thank all the patients for their understanding and collaboration,” added Dr Louange.
Regarding the situation where travellers are being held up because the vaccines they have taken have expired, Dr Gédéon said the health authorities have been made aware of the situationandadded that “once someone has taken his/her second dose, after six month he/she needs to get a booster dose. With that, there is no more vaccination for now and he or she can travel without hiccups. It is a must for people to take all the required vaccinedoses in order not to go in the restriction mode.”
Vidya Gappy