The co-ordinator of the Psychosocial Response Team for COVID-19 has urged Ghanaians to resist any temptation to stigmatise the Ghanaians repatriated last weekend from Kuwait.
The 241 Ghanaian nationals arrived back in Ghana on 24 May, and there is still a possibility that some of them will test positive for the coronavirus disease in future.
Speaking to TV3 News, the psychologist, Joana Larry Afutu, said it would be wrong to alienate anyone who might test positive, especially if the stigmatisation comes from within the family.
“We will follow up for a period of six months after the deportees have gone through mandatory quarantine to see whether they have any trauma or shock,” she said.
Doubly negative
“As far as I am concerned, they mentioned that they have gone through screening over there but we still have to run two tests on them and wait for some few days for the confirmation,” she said.
The first round of tests produced negative results for all of the Ghanaian returnees.
Some COVID-19 patients who have recovered from the disease since the discovery of the first two cases in March have expressed anxiety about the extent of discrimination against them and their families.
The popular reaction has led to fear, making most people feel unable to be open about their health status with even friends and relatives.
President Akufo-Addo has repeatedly called on Ghanaians to desist from stigmatising those affected by the disease.
Two hundred and forty-one (241) Ghanaians and 43 Togolese nationals resident in Kuwait arrived at the Kotoka International Airport Saturday on board a Kuwaiti Aircraft.
They would undergo 14-day mandatory quarantine at designated hotels under heavy security.#GHnewsagency pic.twitter.com/d9vbaK0ZOz
— Ghana News Agency (@GHANANEWSAGENCY) May 23, 2020
Straight into quarantine
The returnees who arrived in Ghana on Saturday have begun to undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine, in line with public health protocols.
They were met on arrival at the Kotoka International Airport in Accra by the Minister of Aviation, Joseph Kofi Adda, Deputy Interior Minister Henry Quartey and other dignitaries, including officials from the Ghana Health Service. The contingent on board the Kuwaiti aircraft also included 43 Togolese. They were taken through orientation and counselling.
Asaaseradio.com understands that officials of the Ghana Health Service will continue routine surveillance of the returnees for COVID-19 from today.
Those who test positive in the second round of results will be isolated and treated at government expense.
Ghana has recorded and confirmed 6,964 cases of the coronavirus disease, with 2,097 recoveries and 32 deaths. It recorded its first two cases of the novel coronavirus in March.
Fred Dzakpata
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