Kagwe Reveals Measures to Deal With 2nd Wave of Covid-19

Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Addressing the media from Kericho on August 10, 2020.
Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Addressing the media from Kericho on August 10, 2020.
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Health CS Mutahi Kagwe on Thursday, October 29, confirmed that the country was going through a second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Kagwe, however, sought to downplay the possibility of a total lockdown saying the new measures would target businesses and institutions that fail to observe the safety measures. 

While updating the Covid-19 situation in the country from Mombasa, Kagwe warned that the positivity rate had spiked in the last week.

"We are essentially on some sought of second wave. On the first wave, the highest positivity rate in July was about 13% positivity rate. The day before yesterday, we had a positivity rate of about 20.2%, yesterday, we were at 15%. This is from a low of about 4% in the month of September. Clearly, we have an issue to deal with," Kagwe stated.

An image of Kagwe
Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe speaking during an annual Akorino conference on Sunday 20 September 2020 at Kasarani, Nairobi.
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After combating the disease for six months, Kagwe stated that measures set in the second wave would be a bit different.

"Instead of closing the entire school fraternity, you close the school that has been affected. That instead of closing the eateries, you close the ones that are not following the rules so that we can still be able to salvage the economy," he stated.

In addition, Kagwe suggested that hospitals that had previously been shut down would be reopened so that more patients would be accommodated in them.

Further, he stated that more health care workers were being sought to take care of the increased number of patients.

The Health CS also directed that every County Executive Committee (CEC) member in the counties should inform the Ministry on what was happening in the country on an hour to hour basis.

Kagwe announced that the country has recorded 761 more Covid-19 positive cases in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases to 52,612.

He added that 14 patients succumbed to the disease bringing the total number of deaths to 964. 

“It’s still clear that the spread of the disease is largely from areas where people are crowded, especially in entertainment areas. If you must go to have a ‘kaspecial’ go outside, try and do it outside," Kagwe advised.

A medical practitioner dressed in protective gear at Coronavirus isolation and treatment facility in Mbagathi District Hospital on Friday, March 6, 2020.
A medical practitioner dressed in protective gear at the Coronavirus isolation and treatment facility in Mbagathi District Hospital on Friday, March 6, 2020.
Simon Kiragu
Kenyans.co.ke
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