The Defense Council of Las Tunas province agreed to tighten epidemiological surveillance and communal sanitation measures in three blocks of this eastern Cuban city, to keep a COVID-19 family transmission focus under control.
In recent weeks, several people were diagnosed, all residents in the Constituency 32, Buena Vista neighborhood, within the Health area of the Gustavo Aldereguía polyclinic, north of Las Tunas city, having as a source of contagion a patient who returned from Havana. However, Dr. Gregory Antonio Pérez Héctor, Deputy Director of Health, clarified that "in our province, we cannot say that we have a local transmission event, it is a family focus because all are living together."
With all that, the Provincial Defense Council gave the green light to the suggestions of Public Health experts to expand the search actions of possible suspected cases in the area of residence of the positives discovered since August 21, to prevent the situation from worsening there.
In this way, any person with respiratory symptoms that is detected in that first surveillance ring will be isolated as a suspect; and the spectrum of real-time PCR tests will be opened to cover a universe of almost 700 inhabitants to rule out the circulation of the virus.
At the same time, patrolling by the public order forces will be increased and the presence of comprehensive inspectors will be increased, with the purpose of enforcing the provisions regarding the mandatory use of the facemask and physical distancing. In addition, as of this Saturday, August 29, the suspension of the sale of alcoholic beverages and food will take effect thereafter 6:00 in the afternoon. Another preventive step will be the cleaning with a chlorinated solution of high traffic roads near this area such as Camilo Cienfuegos Avenue and in particular M. Domínguez Street.
“We cannot trust ourselves. Studies show that SARS-CoV-2 is behaving differently than when the pandemic began,” Dr. Pérez Héctor said and quoted national figures to note that the percentage of asymptomatic cases of the COVID-19 continues to increase with respect to the total of those confirmed.
"Any person who wanders down the street without a mask or who does not respect the rules of distancing can be a potential source of contagion," he stressed. Therefore, he stated, "it is vital that the real physical distancing and hygiene measures be respected both in homes and state facilities or where self-employment is exercised."
Regarding this last aspect, he emphasized that the sanitary inspectors have discovered public buildings incurring in a dangerous relaxation of the epidemiological protection guidelines, such as the footbaths and the use of chlorinated or alcoholic solutions for handwashing. "We cannot allow it," he sentenced.
In mid-July, Las Tunas, like most of the country, went to phase three in the recovery from the new coronavirus pandemic. However, so far in August, nine autochthonous cases have already been diagnosed in the territory, figures higher than these were only recorded in the worst month of the pandemic: April.
