Cape Town - Although the risk of a possible second wave of Covid-19 remains, the provincial Department of Health has been implementing a thorough surveillance system which allows the local health teams to hunt clusters of infections through contact tracing, pattern identification and testing, Health MEC Nomafrench Mbombo has said.
This was in written responses to two queries from legislators who had asked about the possibility of a second wave in the province.
ANC provincial spokesperson on health, Rachel Windvogel, asked: “What is the risk of the province being hit by the second wave of Covid-19 infections and what steps have been taken to prepare the public health-care system for this?”
Mbombo said: “As we have seen in other places in the world, the risk for a possible second wave of Covid-19 continues to remain in the Western Cape.
“To prevent a second wave requires individual and collective responsible behaviour, by wearing a mask when in public, keeping a safe distance of at least 1.5m from others, by regularly washing your hands, and by avoiding large crowds and gatherings where there is poor ventilation.”
Windvogel’s counterpart from the DA, Wendy Philander asked: “What are the department's plans or strategies regarding its readiness ?”
Mbombo said: “Our surveillance system involves five steps to prevent community transmission of the virus. These include heightened vigilance.
“We also identify patterns that suggest outbreaks. This involves case managers calling each case and advising them to isolate.”
Cape Argus