It said the move is part of Ghana’s plans to prevent and control any case that may be detected in the country and ultimately protect the Ghanaian population.

In a statement dated Monday, January 27, 2020, the Ministry said it has triggered the country’s emergency preparedness and response plan amidst the rising number of infections from the novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in other countries of the world.

The Ministry said Regional Directors must designate treatment centres in their respective regions to deal with cases if they arise.

“Ridge Hospital and Tema General Hospital have been designated as initial case management centres. Regional Directors have been instructed to designate holding/treatment centres in their respective regions. We are preparing to designate more centres in the highly populated areas of Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi and Tamale,” the Ministry said.

“Case Management Teams Activated- teams to manage cases at the designated national centres are receiving orientation on the management of cases,” the ministry added.

Stricter travel screening

Following an earlier statement that all passengers from China must mandatorily fill health declaration forms, the Ministry of Health has now enhanced the process by applying it to all international arrivals at the Terminal 3 of the Kotoka International Airport (KIA).

“Screening for fever using the walk-through thermometers and non-contact thermometers are ongoing at KIA and other points of entry. Efforts are underway to ensure that all points of entry have non-contact thermometers,” the Ministry added.

Meanwhile, the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIR) has indicated that it has the capacity to diagnose coronavirus infection and has since been designated as the laboratory for investigating the virus.

The Ministry said it is closely collaborating with the World Health Organization, Veterinary Services Department, Noguchi Memorial Institute of Medical Research, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention among others to execute the country’s emergency response plan.

It said healthcare workers at the points of entry are being trained while training for other healthcare workers will be scheduled for training subsequently.