The government is planning measures to manage Ebola in case the deadly disease ever affects the territory.

 

The effort is being headed by the Ministry of Health and Social Development and the Health and Social Service Committee of the National Disaster Management Council, according to Government Information Services.

Last Friday, committee members met for the third time at the Department of Disaster Management to discuss local preparations.

“We have been working together with the Health Services Authority and border protection agencies for some time to ensure that as a territory, we are fully equipped to handle infectious disease threats,” said Chief Medical Officer Dr. Irad Potter, who chaired the meeting. “We are also routinely monitoring health services staff to ensure consistency with medical practices and procedures for these types of diseases.”

As part of the preparatory efforts, quarantine facilities have been identified at Peebles Hospital, and containment arrangements have been made at all main ports of entry, according to GIS.

Dr. Potter added that the VI is working to ensure that any potential Ebola cases are recognised early and brought to the attention of Public Health England, the Pan American Health Organization, and the World Health Organization. The territory would rely “heavily” on these agencies to support the needed response to Ebola, according to the doctor.

Border control

Meanwhile, border control agencies have updated their procedures for handling infectious diseases in keeping with international health regulations, Dr. Potter said. The procedures, he added, were reviewed in detail and tested through a desktop exercise during last week’s meeting. 

“In the absence of direct international flights into the BVI, we will benefit from the screening being done at various transit points before arrival in the territory,” he said.

The committee has also contacted PAHO about increasing the territory’s stocks of protective equipment and making it accessible to health workers and border officers

The BVI Health Services Authority also has developed a “refresher training programme” for all “front-line health staff” in the use of such equipment and in the management of infected people, according to GIS.

The committee is scheduled to meet again at the end of the month to review arrangements at health facilities and ports of entry.

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