Update on coronavirus |29 January 2020

No one diagnosed with virus

No one has been diagnosed with the novel virus, coronavirus, and admitted to the special unit at the Anse Royale Hospital, contrary to rumours that have been making the rounds.

This has been confirmed by public health commissioner, Dr Jude Gedeon.

But Dr Gedeon also noted that a tourist coming from China, currently residing in a hotel in south Mahé, complained about not feeling well and after examination nothing serious was detected.

Following these events, yesterday, (January 28, 2020) the Ministry of Health issued another travel advisory regarding an update on the novel coronavirus which was first identified in December in Wuhan, a city in central China.

“The outbreak of the new coronavirus in Wuhan, Hubei province, China is ongoing and cases continue to be registered outside Hubei and China in spite of control measures put in place. Not enough is known about the novel coronavirus to draw definitive conclusions about the full clinical features of the disease, the intensity of the human-to-human transmission, and the original source of the outbreak. Chinese authorities are imposing quarantines and restricting travel throughout the country,” stated the Ministry of Health.

Given the specificity of our country as a small island state, the following revisions are being made over the advisory issued on January 25, 2020.

- No person (apart from returning residents), will be allowed to travel to China until further notice.

- Local travel agents and services are requested to advise all clients from China who were planning to visit Seychelles for the next coming months to withdraw their bookings until the outbreak is brought under control.

- Travellers to other places should adopt the following precautions at all times:

• avoid crowded places and close contact with people who are unwell or showing symptoms of illness;

• observe good personal hygiene;

• practice frequent hand washing with soap (e.g. before handling food or eating, after going to toilet, or when hands are dirtied by respiratory secretions after coughing or sneezing);

• wear a mask if you have respiratory symptoms such as a cough or runny nose;

• avoid contact with live animals and consumption of raw and undercooked meats;

• cover your mouth with a tissue paper when coughing or sneezing, and dispose the soiled tissue paper in the rubbish bin immediately and wash hands or use alcohol based hand sanitisers;

• all travellers should monitor their health closely for two weeks upon return to Seychelles and seek medical attention promptly if feeling unwell, and also inform their doctor of their travel history;

• if you have a fever or respiratory symptoms (e.g. cough, runny nose), you should wear a mask and call the clinic ahead of the visit.

Compiled by Vidya Gappy