FULL TEXT: Health Ministry COVID-19 Coronavirus Update -14 March 2020

The Ministry of Education has issued the following update on the Coronavirus that has claimed close to 5000 lives since its outbreak in December 2019.

Ministry of Health and Child Care CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) UPDATE: 14 MARCH 2020

The Ministry of Health and Child Care would like to reassure the nation that the country remains on HIGH alert to COVID-19. Implementation of the National Preparedness and Response Plan continues with a focus on surveillance to prevent importation of cases from countries that have reported confirmed cases of COVID-19.

Screening and follow up of travellers at all our ports of entry therefore continues in earnest The Ministry would also like to advise the nation to avoid being misled by unofficial reports that can cause panic.

The public should instead be guided by the Ministry’s daily updates and frequently issued COVID-19 Situation Reports (SitReps). These reports provide accurate and detailed COVID-19 updates for all.

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Risk of COVID-19 exposure

• The immediate risk of being exposed to the virus that causes COVID-I9 disease is relatively low for most Zimbabweans in the country as there are currently NO confirmed cases of COVID-I 9 in Zimbabwe.
• Travellers returning from affected regional and international locations where there are confirmed cases of COVID-19 disease are at an elevated risk of exposure. The level of risk also depends on the areas they visited as they travelled.
• People in places and countries where there are confirmed cases of COVID-19 and where there is ongoing community spread of the virus that causes COV1D-I9 are at an increased risk ofexposure.
• Close contacts of persons with COVID-I9 disease are also at a higher risk of exposure.

Risk of Severe COVID-19 Illness

Lessons learned from China where COVID-19 disease was first reported, show that people at higher risk of getting very sick or dying fmm COV I 9 disease include:

• Older people – The risk of severe illness increases with age
• People with other pre-existing health conditions such as Heart Disease, Diabetes, and Lung Disease

Some Best Prevention Measures for COVID-19 disease

• Wash your hands frequently with soap and water or use an alc,ohol-based hand rub.
• Who coughing or sneezing, cover your mouth with a flexed elbow or with a tissue then throw the tissue in a bin
• Avoid handshakes and hugs
• Avoid close contact with people who have a fever, arc coughing, sneezing and have come from a country that has confirmed COVID-I9 cases
• Stay away from big crowds or crowded places.
• Avoid all unnecessary travel to and from countries with confirmed COVID-19 cases.