Community Survey to Precede Exit Strategy for Coronavirus-Free Dominica
Given that no new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Dominica for several weeks, the federal government is planning on an exit strategy from the current state of emergency imposed on the country. Before the exit strategy is implemented, the Ministry of Health will conduct community survey starting from May 5 to determine if there are any unreported cases among the local folks.
The survey will take the form of COVID-19 testings in the community and it will last one full month starting from May 5. The starting date will mark the second two-week incubation cycle (21 days) that no new infections were detected on the island. The survey will be carried out as random coronavirus tests on individuals, and the suspension of the current state of emergency will only be announced if there are no positive cases anyone in the country.
The community testing will begin in the villages of La Plaine and Marigot which are deemed as high risk areas. National epidemiologist Dr. Shaluddin Ahmed said that up to 75% of infected persons are asymptomatic, and the survey will show the extent of tentative infections in the country. Starting from La Plaine and Marigot, the survey will be carried out at random in seven health districts.
“This survey will be conducted on the randomly selected proportion of households from all seven health districts. The survey will be initiated in the high-risk areas, first namely the La Plaine and Marigot health districts,” Ahmed announced.
Only 16 positive coronavirus cases were confirmed in Dominica and no new cases were discovered in almost 21 days. Thirteen of the patients have been discharged and only three are waiting to be discharged at the end of this week. The statistics of the 16 patients are 11 males and five females. Meanwhile, a total of 386 people have been tested across Dominica and none of the 16 identified cases required the intervention of ventilators or died from the pandemic.
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