The Tribune

By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

THE Grand Bahama COVID-19 cluster is “resolved”, Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Michael Darville said yesterday, even as a pharmacist on the island reported a rise in respiratory infections among people seeking medicine.

Asked whether he was concerned about the cluster, Dr Darville told reporters on his way to Cabinet: “Absolutely not.”

He described the outbreak as an isolated incident, and said the one person who became sick enough to be hospitalised has since been discharged.

“The cluster is resolved, and that’s nothing more to say about the cluster,” he said.

The cluster followed an Anglican church retreat held at St Jude’s Anglican Church in Smith’s Point, Grand Bahama, from October 8 to 11. According to health officials, 20 of the 112 people who attended tested positive for COVID-19 through rapid testing. Fourteen live in Grand Bahama and six in New Providence. One Grand Bahama resident was admitted to the Rand Memorial Hospital in stable condition.

The Bahamas Department of Correctional Services has suspended in-person visits until further notice because of the cluster.

Dr Darville said it was his duty to tell the public about the cluster, but warned against overreaction.

“But it is my job as a Minister of Health that if I have a cluster, to report it to the Bahamian people,” he said. “But I don’t want this to get legs of its own as if we have a massive infestation in the country.”

“COVID has never left us, but this is one incident where there was a cluster infection. Somebody was exposed to COVID, and they were in [that] environment,” he said.

He said COVID-19 continues to circulate around the world, and health officials have been managing isolated cases.

Dr Darville said most of those who tested positive in the cluster were vaccinated and had only mild symptoms, and that vaccination was paramount in preventing severe illness.

“The beauty about it is the majority of people who tested positive were vaccinated, so they had very minimal symptoms,” he said.

However, a pharmacist in Eight Mile Rock told The Tribune there had been an uptick in respiratory infections, with some customers seeking medicine for chest and other respiratory symptoms. The pharmacist said it was hard to tell whether the illnesses were COVID-19 or other respiratory infections, as customers generally described cold-like symptoms. The pharmacist advised residents to keep up their vitamin D3 and zinc intake, saying precautions against influenza and other respiratory illnesses remained important.

A pharmacist in Freeport said there had been no alarming increase in COVID-related prescriptions. Customers were mainly seeking treatment for routine coughs and colds, including antibiotics and other cold medicines, and there had been no noticeable rise in sales of supplements such as vitamin D3, vitamin C, vitamin B complex and cod liver oil, which some people take to support their immune systems.

Dr Darville urged Bahamians to keep up the hygiene habits many adopted during the pandemic, particularly when they have symptoms of a cold, flu or other upper respiratory infection. He said people with mild illness can often recover at home but should take care not to spread it.

“If you have an upper respiratory tract infection, put a mask on. Don’t cough in front of people. Place [your] cough in your shoulder. Keep your hands clean,” he said.