Ghana Medical Association appeals to doctors trained for Ebola to be on standby for coronavirus

Doctors and other health professionals in Ghana trained five years ago to respond to Ebola cases are being asked to immediately regroup and prepare to handle any possible case of coronavirus, which has been declared a global health emergency.

Cases of the virus have reached nearly 10,000 in China, and more than 100 cases have been reported in 22 other countries. A total of 213 have died from the disease in China so far, according to the BBC.

On the back of cases being recorded outside china where the outbreak originated, Ghana has stepped up surveillance at its entry points as passengers are screened for possible infection before being allowed entry.

Government on Monday designated the Ridge Hospital and the Tema General Hospital as centres to manage possible cases of coronavirus in the country.

It also said the country has triggered its emergency preparedness and response plan amidst the rising number of infections from the virus which was first recorded in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

The Ghana Medical in a statement Friday said it is concerned about the disease.

“The human interactions between countries make the possibility of an outbreak of the coronavirus in Ghana very real,” it stated.

The situation, according to the association, requires that Ghana prepares in terms of logistics, protocols and trained personnel to deal with any possible case.

Accordingly, it underscored the need for the reactivation of a well-coordinated rapid response team like the one set up during the Ebola pandemic in 2014/2015.

“We urge doctors and other health care workers who were trained as part of that response team to immediately regroup and get involved actively as we strengthen our preparedness towards any possible case of coronavirus infection in Ghana”.