Suspected case of coronavirus detected in Paga

Correspondence from Upper East

Health authorities at Paga in the Kasena-Nankana West District of the Upper East Region are currently monitoring a suspected case of coronavirus.

The suspected case was detected on Friday by health workers at the Nakolo Clinic and efforts are being made to ascertain the condition.

The patient, it is gathered, came to the facility from one of the nearby villages close to the border on the side to Burkina Faso to seek health care.

According to the District Director of Health Service, Hypolite Yeleduor, who shared details with Ghanaweb's Senyalah Castro, the workers after admitting the patient observed symptoms similar to the disease and detained him for further observation.

Mr. Yeleduor said interactions with the patient revealed that he joined a gathering at a funeral home and later got sick, raising fears he might have been infected with the virus there.

He said authorities at the regional level have been informed about the case and samples would soon be picked for tests in Accra.

He added that some other samples have also been sent to the regional hospital for testing for other suspected conditions.

Mr. Yeleduor said: "Yesterday, workers at the Nakolo Clinic detected symptoms of the COVID-19 on a patient who had come in from one of the villages near the border towards Burkina Faso. So seeing those symptoms, the nurses reported to their in- charge who went there today to ascertain the case".



"We can't entirely say it's COVID-19 because he is showing symptoms of other diseases like Hypertitis and some other diseases. We have sent samples to the regional hospital for tests and we are waiting to see the outcome.

"We have also informed the regional team and samples for the COVID-19 testings will also be picked and sent Accra. We don't have the capacity to run such tests here," he added.

He urged the public to keep calm while efforts are made to establish the condition.

He lamented the porous state of the Ghana border and the numerous unapproved routes people use to enter the country.