Public health officials are associating an alarming increase in COVID-19 deaths with persons bringing the viral illness into the homes of their elderly and vulnerable relatives.
Head of the Government’s COVID-19 Communications Unit Ambassador Elizabeth Thompson sounded the alarm as she confirmed the death of an 84-year-old woman, who is the country’s fifth virus-related death in just over a week.
Ambassador Thompson told Barbados TODAY while many elderly persons are heeding calls to stay indoors, the risk of death remains high if their relatives do not adhere to protocols and warnings intended to combat the ongoing wave of community transmission.
“This is why we are re-emphasizing and making mask-wearing mandatory and it is why [the country] is going on ‘pause’, because it is clear that family members are infecting these senior citizens,” the ambassador told Barbados TODAY.
“These family members are bringing the disease home and although they may not be affected, it is the more vulnerable in the households that are succumbing to the illness. It is therefore critical that people practice the health and safety protocols, that people observe the pause and not go out, and while it seems ridiculous, we should really exercise great caution with family members and those whom we know best,” she added.
On January 20th, Barbadians were informed that two men ages 83 and 84 were the first two COVID-19 deaths since April last year. Days later, two women, 91 and 48 years old succumbed to the dreaded disease, with the 84-year-old death announced on Friday becoming the fifth since January 20th.
Barbados TODAY understands the latest casualty was associated with a popular restaurant near Baxter’s Road, in The City. According to a government release, she had a pre-existing chronic medical condition. Her death brought the total number of fatalities to 12.
During her Tuesday night address to the nation, Prime Minister Mia Mottley discouraged elderly citizens from venturing outside during the 15-day national “pause”.
However, the Ambassador again emphasized that in many instances, elderly victims have been contracting the virus from the comfort of their own homes.
“It is not strangers, it is those persons who we know best and with whom we feel comfortable, that we let our guard down, and that creates the entry way for infection and illness,” said Thompson.
“When one looks at the last four COVID-19 deaths, except for one that took place at Harrison Point, these were all elderly people who were home-bound and therefore it emphasizes the message of the Ministry of Health and the Government, that it is absolutely essential to protect that cohort of the population,” the ambassador added.
The appeal was made less than 24-hours after details also emerged about a positive case at the country’s main Geriatric Hospital at Beckles Road St. Michael, that followed two COVID-19 scares at nursing homes across the island.
On Thursday night, Minister of Health and Wellness, Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Bostic said the origin of the Geriatric Hospital case is still unclear, but stressed that all other patients and staff have tested negative.
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Is there a Baxters’ Road cluster? Is there information we are not being given? How many clusters are there?