Observations on the ground show a worsening impact of coronavirus on patients, according to Dr Justice Yankson, the General Secretary of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA).
Although he acknowledged the GMA is yet to establish a scientific basis, Dr Yankson said the virus is clearly transmitting faster.
“Just based on the empirical evidence, clearly, that is where we are. If you come to our health facilities, the way infected persons come now, they are presenting in their worst forms,” he said in a media interview.
Dr Yankson also said younger persons are being left with worse conditions by the virus.
“You have teenagers coming in, people in their early 20s and what have you. If you look at the balance, it is more [young people getting infected] now. We are seeing 15-year-olds who have lost part of their lungs to COVID-19.
“Even the rate at which doctors and nurses are getting the infection at the workplace is also going up,” he added.
Currently, Dr Yankson said, work is ongoing to establish the details of the changing situation with the virus in Ghana.
Christian Council
Meanwhile, the Christian Council of Ghana says churches will not hesitate to close down, should the government decide to ban all forms of social gatherings to curtail the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak.
This follows suggestions by the Ghana Medical Association to government to ban all forms of social activities to reduce the recent spike in COVID-19 numbers.
“Government should as a matter of urgency, restrict social gatherings such as church services, parties, funerals, clubs and other forms of social gatherings of such nature,” GMA had stated in an earlier press conference.
This has been welcomed by the Chairman of the Christian Council of Ghana, Reverend Dr Paul Kwabena Boafo.
According to him, if that’s the best decision in this fight, then the churches are ever ready to comply.
He however suggested that the churches have complied with all preventive protocols established in this fight.
“For us as a church, we believe we have adhered strictly to every measure to fight this COVID-19 pandemic and so if the government should go by that measure, which is advocated by GMA, the churches will come together and then make an input.
“If it becomes very necessary, as it was in the earlier one, that there should be a total ban per the data and statistics, then we might go with it but if it will also mean going by the earlier limiting capacity, we would do as such,” he said.
Adherence
He however bemoaned a situation where the ban will be adhered to by others and disregarded by some.
“But if it comes that there should be a total ban which affects everybody then the churches cannot be exempted,” he stated.
Ghana is currently experiencing a third wave of COVID-19 infections. The country has close to 4,000 active cases as of the late update by the Ghana Health Service (GHS). This has led to an overstretch of the health facilities in the country.
The Greater Accra, Ashanti, Central and Western regions are leading with high number of the active cases.
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