The Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus has been confirmed in Barbados, and the island’s top health official has indicated that it is likely spreading in the community.
However, in making the revelation on Thursday during a media briefing, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Kenneth George said there was no need for panic, as he urged residents to continue mask wearing, physical distancing and regular hand washing and sanitization.
“We have been consistently saying to the public within the last two to three weeks that the likelihood of Omicron being in our borders was high. And we had a reason for saying this because the experience in several other countries indicated that the virus spreads extremely rapidly within communities, and, therefore, Barbados was not going to be spared.
“We have had confirmation of Omicron by the CARPHA [Caribbean Public Health Agency] laboratory – a single case. To date, that is the only confirmed case we have had. However, I must couch that by saying that we have been doing preliminary sequencing at the Best Dos Santos Laboratory and there is also preliminary evidence that Omicron is established in Barbados,” the CMO revealed.
Recalling that Barbados had to deal with an outbreak of the Delta variant earlier this year, he added: “We do not need to panic. We have come this road before.”
Pointing to the rising number of COVID-19 cases on the island over the past week, Dr George said “every two individuals are likely to transfer the virus to three persons”, adding that “at this juncture, Omicron is here”.
There were 247 new COVID-19 cases recorded for Wednesday, from 1,483 tests. There were 227 new cases from 1,409 tests the previous day.
Dr George said “carefully selected” test samples have been sent to CARPHA for genome sequencing and the results are expected within 7 to 10 days.
He explained: “Those samples were carefully selected because either of low CT values or unusual presentations. Once we have this information we will share it with the public.”
The CT, also known as the cycle threshold, is a value that emerges during a PCR test and helps health officials determine if a person has the COVID-19 virus or not.
Staying clear of saying how the new COVID-19 variant may have entered the island, Dr George stressed that it was already established and that the “source market was not important”.
However, he indicated that “we knew about this five to six days ago. As I said, it was a single confirmed case and the Best Dos Santos Laboratory has been doing preliminary testing, which involves looking for the concept of the S-gene dropout. That S-gene dropout gives a feeling or an indication if this can be Omicron”.
“The assumption is that Omicron is established in Barbados,” he said as he noted that for the past two weeks, health officials have done some 540 tests and about 40 per cent of those tests showed the S-gene dropout, a marker for the Omicron variant pending sequencing confirmation.
Dr George did not say if all 40 per cent, or approximately 216 tests, that showed the S-gene dropout were sent to CARPHA for confirmation, but he indicated it was “certainly of tremendous concern to us in the Ministry of Health”.
The CMO noted that while the Omicron variant is highly contagious, it is less severe than previous strains. However, pointing to Barbados’ large elderly population and the “high burden” of non-communicable diseases, he said he was very concerned.
“Although the likelihood of severe disease and death is not as high, just based on volumes we have the potential to overrun our health care system which we are trying so [much] to protect. Therefore, with that information, I urge you to…wear your mask at all times while in public spaces [in] close quarters with one another or when you are indoors; practise the physical distancing we have been talking about; and use hand sanitization as frequently as possible,” urged Dr George.
He also encouraged residents to take a COVID-19 vaccine to help protect them from adverse reaction to the virus, while urging those who are eligible for booster shots to “come forward”.
“As we look forward to the New Year, we believe in the Ministry of Health that COVID will be with us for the long-term. We have put proposals on the table to make COVID more like the flu and for persons to understand that we have to live with the hand we were dealt and normalise the process of living in Barbados with COVID,” said Dr George.
Though saying there have been no “super spreader events” that could account for the rising COVID-19 cases in recent times, the CMO noted: “What I will tell you is that we are picking up more Barbadian [non-residents] . . . . That number has been increasing because over the Christmas holiday a lot of people wanted to return home and Barbados has taken the position that absolute border control [doesn’t] work.”
Dr George said contact tracing for the Omicron variant was unlikely given its ability to spread rapidly and easily.
marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb
