The government has attributed the sudden rise in Covid-19 recoveries in the country to the latest World Health Organisation (WHO) protocols on the novel virus.
The country’s recoveries jumped from 1 998 to 4442 between 14 August to 19 August 2020.
“As you are aware that Covid-19 is a novel virus and each day we are learning new information about it and how to combat it. The National Taskforce today noted the changes in the World Health Organisation’s protocols on Covid-19,” said Information Minister Monica Mustvanga in a media brief on Monday.
“The new protocols include the revision of the definitions of suspected and probable cases to take into account the increased knowledge on the clinical spectrum of Covid-19 signs and symptoms and updated approaches to surveillance.
“Consequentially, our statistics have changed as we implement these new protocols. Recoveries have risen from 1 998 to 4 442 for the period between 14 August to 19 August 2020 largely due to the changes in the determination of the serostatus, the state of either having or not having detectable antibodies of Covid-19 in patients.”
Resultantly, active cases have also dropped to 1 051, said Mutsvangwa.
Mutsvangwa added that the number of people in quarantine facilities have also been reduced following the WHO recommendation that the quarantine period be reduced to 14 days.
“There are presently 1 293 persons in quarantine facilities, which marks a significant reduction from the figures reported in previous weeks. This again follows WHO recommendation that the quarantine period be reduced from 21 to 14 days,” she said.
However, Mutsvangwa said the local transmissions remain a cause of concern as they continue to rise.
“As our figures of local transmission remain worrisome and continue to rise, the national taskforce informs that infection, prevention and control, capacity building nationwide continues,” she noted.
Mutsvangwa said government was concerned with “unnecessary travelling which increases risk in urban areas.”
“Citizens are therefore encouraged to only travel when absolutely necessary and those who do not have to travel during peak hours are also encouraged to avoid travelling during these high contagious times.”
