Increase in hospitalisation, COVID infections recorded

Minister of Health Dr Frank Anthony is urging persons to adhere to the COVID-19 guidelines and get vaccinated as the country continues to see a steady increase in hospitalisation and positive infections.

There are 99 patients currently hospitalised across Guyana; 23 patients are critically ill and are receiving care in the COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit at the Infectious Diseases Hospital at Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara.

Dr Anthony said 73 patients are at the Infectious Diseases Hospital and seven are at the West Demerara Regional Hospital. A few other patients are being treated at Mahaicony, Rose Hall, Skeldon and in Bartica.

“We have noticed that we have an increase in cases, so over the last week or so we have had a steady increase in cases,” Dr Anthony said on Thursday during his daily COVID-19 update.

The Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) is also reporting an upsurge in positive infections in the Caribbean region. PAHO warned that the majority of infections are from unvaccinated persons.

Meanwhile, Guyana is reporting an additional 152 positive cases in last the 24 hours across the country. This means that there are 1, 695 active cases.

As of Thursday, August 26, 2021, 59.8 percent of the adult population or 306, 906 persons received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine while 30.9 per cent or 158, 557 are fully vaccinated.

But while there has been a constant increase in vaccination, Dr Anthony said Guyana is still a long way from herd immunity. To achieve herd immunity, approximately 80 percent of the population must be vaccinated.

“We still have to work together to make sure that we increase these numbers, community by community, region by region, to make sure that we are protecting ourselves,” Dr Anthony said.