During a press conference at the Ministry of Health, about the handling of suspected coronavirus cases, the scientific team assured that a man, held in quarantine at Nicosia General Hospital is in good health and gave no indications of fever on Saturday.
The tests to confirm whether he contracted coronavirus or not were sent abroad and according to the scientific team, final results are expected late on Saturday or on Sunday.
Elisavet Constantinou, the Director of Medical and Public Health Services, told reporters that preparations to deal with cases like this have started a long time ago, by initiating protocols in line with World Health Organisation and European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control guidelines.
“A man held in quarantine at Nicosia General Hospital is in good health and gave no indications of fever on Saturday.”
Pathologist Costas Constantinou said from his part that the epidemic is ongoing and guidelines change constantly. According to these guidelines, the case would have been placed under surveillance, but now it needs to be further examined, he added.
He also said that in the last few weeks a series of measures were taken, increasing vigilance at points of entry and providing guidance to health professionals and various services on how to handle a case.
Speaking about the suspected case, Constantinou said that the chances that this is actually a coronavirus case are very low. The patient visited Beijing, and was far from Wuhan, the area where the virus emerged, he said. Moreover, he said that the patient has not been in contact with confirmed cases or cases that are under investigation.
The Director of Medical and Public Health Services said that from Monday onwards, tests will be carried out by the Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics.
“The Director of Medical and Public Health Services said that from Monday onwards, tests will be carried out by the Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics.”
Ioanna Gregoriou, Occupational and Public Health Doctor, said from her part that WHO and ECDC directives indicate that only passengers arriving from Hubei the Province, in China, should be examined at local airports. However, checks in Cyprus are being conducted on all passengers coming from China and this is why this case was immediately identified, Gregoriou noted.
Replying to questions, Constantinou said that a relative of the man who is in quarantine at the hospital is also being monitored, for having contact with the possible coronavirus case. The relative has been examined and has no symptoms, he added.
The Director of Medical and Public Health Services also said that an information leaflet is distributed at checkpoints and those passing through are asked specific questions, following a meeting of the competent authorities of the Republic of Cyprus.
Cyprus’ Health Minister briefs his Croatian counterpart on suspected coronavirus case
Cyprus’ Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou briefed on Saturday his Croatian counterpart, Vili Beros, about the handling of a suspected case of coronavirus, detected in the country, and conveyed his readiness to participate in a meeting with the EU Ministers of Health, if deemed necessary.
According to an announcement, circulated by PIO, Ioannou and Beros had this afternoon a telephone conversation to discuss and coordinate their actions on the issue of coronavirus. Minister Beros, whose country assumed the Presidency of the European Council on 1 January 2020, holds a series of contacts with his EU counterparts.
Ioannou informed Beros on the action plan and the protocols Cyprus has designed to address the spread of coronavirus, on the basis of the directives issued by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the World Health Organization.
“Beros acknowledged that the actions implemented by Cyprus’ Authorities are the appropriate ones”
Minister Ioannou also briefed his Croatian counterpart on the way Cyprus’ authorities put into effect on Friday an action plan to handle a suspected case detected in Cyprus. Beros acknowledged that the actions implemented by Cyprus’ Authorities are the appropriate ones, based on the directives issued so far by the competent international and European organizations.
The Cyprus Health Minister also conveyed his readiness to participate in a meeting with the EU Ministers of Health, if and when deemed necessary by the Croatian Presidency or any EU institution.
“The Cyprus Health Minister also conveyed his readiness to participate in a meeting with the EU Ministers of Health.”
Finally, the two Ministers agreed to intensify the cooperation on a bilateral level as well as with all their EU counterparts, through a platform of communication, mainly aimed at better coordination and exchange of best practices applied by the member states in order to handle the epidemic in European level, the announcement concludes
