March 12, 2020 - 1807 views
Dr Robin Howe, Incident Director for the Novel Coronavirus outbreak response at Public Health Wales, has confirmed that the first instance in North Wales has been detected. He said:
“One case is in Blaenau Gwent local authority, and one is in Wrexham local authority area. These two cases have no history of travel to a country where the virus is circulating, and are not known to have had contact with another confirmed case.
“One case is in the Monmouthshire local authority area, and is associated with travel abroad.
“One case is in the Cardiff local authority area, and is also associated with travel abroad.
“Two of the new cases are in Neath Port Talbot local authority area, and are contacts of a previous case.
“We can confirm that six new cases have tested positive for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in Wales to 25.
“The process of identifying and contacting close contacts of the new cases is underway, and we are taking all appropriate actions to protect the public’s health.
“The six patients are being managed in clinically appropriate settings based on the assessment of a specialist infectious disease consultant.
“Public Health Wales has a responsibility to protect individuals tested and patients being treated for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). For this reason no further details regarding these individuals will be released.
“We ask those reporting on the situation to respect patient confidentiality, and to understand our efforts to protect their privacy.
“785 people in Wales have been tested for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). 760 results were negative, and 25 results were positive.
“The public can be assured that Wales and the whole of the UK is prepared for these types of incidents. Working with our partners in Wales and the UK, we have implemented our planned response, with robust infection control measures in place to protect the health of the public".
