The Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment. wishes to advise
the public that there is no evidence of community transmission relative to
COVID-19, in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
On Tuesday, April 21, the Caribbean Public Health Agency CARPHA
revealed a new positive COVID-19 case for St. Vincent and the
Grenadines, the first since April 9, 2020. Since then, speculation has been
rife, about the origin of this latest case.
According to the Chief Medical Officer Dr Simone Keizer, ongoing
preliminary investigations into the new case point to a possible local
transmission, since the individual in question has no known travel history.
In distinguishing between local and community spread, Dr Keizer Beache
notes that according to CARPHA, Community Spread refers to instances
where several people in a community test positive for COVID-19 without
any known contact with an imported case. “Local spread” or a “Secondary
case” describes a situation where the person was never abroad, but was
exposed to an imported case, so that the source of the infection can be
identified.
The CMO notes that the Ministry of Health, Wellness and the
Environment is cognizant of the need to keep the public aware of every
development in respect of COVID-19 in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Dr Keizer Beache is assuring the public that the Ministry, the official
source of COVID-19 information in St. Vincent and the Grenadines,
remains committed to providing, timely, accurate and relevant
information, as we continue to manage this public health challenge
together.
