Emergency operations centre opened and ready to tackle coronavirus, says Mkhize
by Zintle Mahlati
Johannesburg - Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has moved to assure the public that there have been no cases of the coronavirus detected in the country.
Mkhize also announced that the emergency operation centre has been officially opened and is staffed with individuals who will work specifically on monitoring the coronavirus.
"To date, there is no confirmed case of the coronavirus in South Africa. If there was any we would have been able to do that ourselves because we have the facilities to be able to confirm such a diagnosis. We have remained vigilant regarding the developments about the viral infection from across the world. We continue to engage academics on how to better understand this virus and how it behaves and it's health effects," he said.
The minister was briefing the media on Friday.
The coronavirus has sent fears around the world since it was first detected on December 31 in Wuhan, China. The virus is believed to have been contracted from animals.
It has killed more than 200 people in China and has already infected about 10 000 more. There is no cure for the virus at the moment. Mkhize said the help being offered will deal with symptoms presented by the virus.
Mkhize's announcement on the government's readiness to tackle the virus came a day after the World Health Organisation declared the coronavirus a global health emergency.
"We welcome the World Health Organisation declaring the coronavirus a global health emergency. This sets into motion an enabling framework to ensure that there is a multi-national effort to stop and detect the virus," Mkhize said.
Mkhize said the country was ready to act on the virus if any person would be infected. He said the measures taken so far to ensure detection of the virus include; identifying hospitals in each province to deal with the virus centrally and health monitoring at all ports of entry and call centres opened for clinicians.
“Centres have been identified for their ability to isolate, manage and contain suspected cases of the virus, as well as for research purposes. This by no means suggests that other facilities won’t be able to handle suspected cases. It is simply a mechanism to centralise information and data collection," he said.
Mkhize said he had also requested that all departments report if there are any South Africans in China. He said citizens who are there can ask for help from the South African embassy. The department of international relations and cooperation has also opened a hotline to assist South Africans.