Ghana’s coronavirus cases increase to six

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Ghana has tripled to six, just three days after the first two were announced on Thursday, March 12, 2020.

Dr Badu Sarkodie, the Director for Public Health at the Ghana Health Service (GHS), disclosed the new cases in a news update on Sunday, March 15.

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He said they had isolated all the patients and were they being monitored closely.

The four new cases involve three men and one woman.

Among the patients is a 56-year-old Ghanaian, who returned from a trip to the UK on March 4 after staying there for 10 days. After arriving in Ghana, he developed symptoms on March 12 and reported to a hospital in Obuasi.

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His samples were taken and tested in Kumasi, which turned out to be a positive case of COVID-19.

On Friday, March 13, a suspected coronavirus case at the Nyaho Clinic was detected and declared positive after tests at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR).

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Checks by theghanareport.com revealed that the student had travelled from Dallas, US, to Accra on Monday, March 9. She had been to the campus of the University of Ghana (UG) and attended lectures at both the Business School  (G2) lecture hall and the School of Pharmacy new laboratory and lecture halls. Five people who interacted with the patient have been self-isolated to ensure their safety and that of others.

On Saturday, March 14, Noguchi confirmed two new cases.

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The first was a 42-year-old Ghanaian man who returned to Ghana on March 8 after trips to Switzerland and the UK in the past 14 days. Symptoms started on March 9, and he reported to a health facility. Samples taken to Noguchi proved positive for the coronavirus.

The other case involved a 41-year-old Ghanaian man who reported to the Tema General Hospital on March 14 with conditions of fever and acute respiratory problems. The symptoms started on March 10 after he returned from a trip to Germany and Turkey, within the last 14 days.

The infected persons have been isolated and are receiving treatment. The health authorities have started contact tracing, to identify all persons the patients encountered during the period.