By Nelson Manneh
The Gambia has on Tuesday 16th March 2021 registered thirty-four new cases of the deadly coronavirus disease, bringing the total number of COVID-19 cases ever confirmed in the country to five thousand and nineteen.
63% of these were tested for reasons of travelling, 27% were ill and sought health attention due to suspicion of COVID-19 and 3% due to contact with confirmed cases. The median age of the new cases is 40.
No new COVID-19-related death was registered and the total number of deaths since March 2020 is one hundred and fifty-three.
This is the 278th national situation report since the confirmation of the first case of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in The Gambia, on the 16th March 2020. The Gambia currently has twenty-six people in hotel quarantine and three hundred and forty-one active cases.
Modou Njai, the Director of Health Promotion and Education at the Ministry of Health, said a total of three hundred and ten new laboratory test results were received from the Medical Research Council and the National Public Health Lab.
Of these, Director Njai said thirty-four new samples tested positive, representing 11% positivity test rate.
“Thirty-two high-risk contacts of recently confirmed cases were identified and their follow-up began in earnest. One COVID-19 patient absconded from one of the treatment centres,” he said.
Njai said three COVID-19 patients were newly discharged from a treatment centre, eighty-five got discharged at least 10 days from the day they tested positive but evaded institutional isolation.
Four COVID-19 patients are currently on oxygen therapy.
