M.O.H. Continues Preparation for P.G.I.A. Reopening
Marvin Manzanero
According to Doctor Marvin Manzanero, the Ministry of Health is currently assessing how many beds and ventilators are currently available in the country for seriously ill COVID-19 patient. This is part of the preparation ahead of the reopening of the Philip Goldson International Airport on August fifteenth due to the expectation that there might be a more severe wave of the novel coronavirus. Manzanero says that a model fashioned by Jamaica after it reopened to tourism is being studied with the thinking that it will be implemented in Belize.
Dr. Marvin Manzanero, Director of Health Services
“We are still expecting more because last week we got one from U.N.D.P. and we are still expecting five non evasive ones and we also need to tally the ones that the government of Taiwan has facilitated for us.”
Hipolito Novelo
“In you expertise, how many ventilators do we need or how many beds should we prepare going in to that P.G.I.A. will be will be opened on August fifteenth and we have that issue with borders jumpers and of course Guatemala and Mexico’s numbers increasing?”
Dr. Marvin Manzanero
“I don’t think anybody can give you a number in terms of how many you should prepare for because it is a dynamic process and even if you do a straight mathematical model it does not necessarily work out as that and you can see it in a health system such as the U.S. that is having much more resources that we have. So what you do is you model your response based on your bed capacity. Interestingly for example earlier this week we saw what Jamaica had said in terms when they will potentially have to close down again. Again we have to go and review what they meant but they said two point five percent increase in their threshold and I am assuming that that’s from when they opened the airport if they have a two point five increase in the number of cases from when they opened to when they will have to close. We assume that that two point five percent is based on the bed capacity they have.”
Hipolito Novelo
“And the ventilators, they will be spread across the different regions?”
Dr. Marvin Manzanero
“For now it is only Karl Heusner. Western Regional has been asked to set up a ventilation system for invasive ventilation, Orange Walk as well.”
Hipolito Novelo
“In terms of training have people been trained to operate the system, the procedures or will be trained?”
Dr. Marvin Manzanero
“The anticipation is that they will be trained. Some elements of it have been done virtually but that will not be enough. You will need to have ventilation system set up. Not just the use of ventilators because there are other things that are required once somebody is hooked up to a ventilator.”
