Georgetown – The Ministry of Health has issued a new advisory as the fight continues against the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).
In a statement, the ministry has issued a warning for children by encouraging parents to ensure that all children above the age of two wear face masks since they appear to be at a higher risk of contracting the virus.
“We should encourage children to wear masks, especially in the light that right mow globally, you have the delta variant that is currently circulating and with this particular variant, anyone who is unvaccinated, would be at risk which includes children,” said minister of health Dr Frank Anthony during his recent COVID-19 update.
Anthony explained that children with underlying conditions should wear medical-type masks for extra protection while those without medical conditions can wear the cloth masks. But with the new strains of the virus, the Minister said children must wear their masks.
So globally we are seeing a lot more children are getting infected and because of those infections, they are being hospitalised. With the original strain of the virus, we would have seen that when children are infected, they got a milder form of the disease, but with these variants that are circulating when children get infected a small percentage of them can end up in the hospital.”
The Minister stressed that he is not in favor of children using face shields as it does not provide enough protection, especially in crowded environments. Children must also wear their masks if they are outdoor playing with other children, the minister encouraged.
“If they are outdoor by themselves, they can go without the mask, however, if they are with other children, it is recommended that they should have a mask on. If they are going to be some distance from each other then you can think about not using the mask,” he said.
Since the first case of the pandemic was recorded in Guyana a year ago, more than 1 500 children have contracted COVID-19 with three of them losing their battle against the virus.
Recently, a 16-year-old died from COVID-19 and at least three others are in hospital.
According to public health officials, there is growing concern that the fast-spreading Delta strain is in Guyana and is affecting more children than any other strain. (CMC)
