The report of the Scientific Council on the evolution of the coronavirus in the Overseas Territories has just been released, this Friday, April 10. He “considers it essential to maintain strict confinement in overseas territories, until the end of the epidemic peak”.
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Posted on April 10, 2020 at 3:13 p.m., updated on April 10, 2020 at 5:29 p.m.
“The epidemic in the overseas territories will worsen in the coming weeks”: in a notice published this Friday, April 10, the scientific council warns of the situation overseas. In this document, the 11 members of the council mandated by the Ministry of Solidarity and Health recommend taking advantage of the “epidemic gap” with France to slow the progression of the virus in Overseas.
They draw up 10 specific recommendations:
► Strict confinement
In place on the national territory since March 17, strict confinement is to be maintained in Overseas “until the end of the epidemic wave,” said the council. He recommends special care for precarious populations, with the help in particular of the armed forces deployed via the Dixmude and Mistral helicopter carriers.
► Reinforcement of hospital capacities
It is a question for the scientific council of “doubling the capacity of reception in reanimation beds” in the Overseas Territories, but also of “strengthening in number and in training the hospital teams, by possibly mobilizing the Sanitary Reserve and the Service of Army Health “.
The situation in Mayotte being particularly worrying according to the scientific council, he envisages the installation of a “medical extrahospital structure” to isolate the non serious patients of Covid-19.
► Test strategy
“Test, test, test” is the strategy recommended by the scientific council. “Anyone suspected of Covid-19 should be able to have a diagnostic test” in the Overseas Territories. For this, it would be necessary to deploy specific units to develop these tests on a large scale.
The scientific council also advises to strengthen the epidemiological teams under the coordination of Public Health France in order to allow a better follow-up of the contacts of the identified sick people.
► Trials of antiviral treatments
The scientific council finally recommends, “within the framework of research protocol for certain territories”, access “to antiviral treatments which will have shown their effectiveness” against Covid-19.
►3 types of situation depending on the territory
The report considers that overseas, the situations of the territories are different in the face of the epidemic. He distinguishes 3 distinct situations: “Because of the significant risk of epidemic explosion and paralysis of the health system, Mayotte is in a category apart. This situation therefore requires confinement” arranged “with a night curfew.”
In a second group, the territories where the virus circulates: Guadeloupe, Saint-Martin, Saint Barthélémy, Martinique, Guyana, La Réunion, New Caledonia and French Polynesia. “This group of territories at a stage 2 and 3 of the epidemic can implement certain common measures, adapting them to their specificities. It is considered that their hospitals, by strengthening their capacities in resuscitation beds and reorganization can accommodate serious cases of Covid-19, although they are aware of the material difficulties for the University Hospital Center (CHU) of Guadeloupe. “
Finally for Saint-Pierre and Miquelon (1 proven case) and Wallis and Futuna, the council evokes a possible “cautiously deconfinement”: “In the territories having no Covid-19 case and practicing a rigorous preventive fortnight, with systematic screening of Covid-19 at the end of the fortnight for all people arriving in the territory, and close contact monitoring, the question of a cautious, progressive deconfinement can be discussed as long as no positive case of Covid-19 is identified, outside the fortnight. The idea is then to sanitary isolate the territories rather than their inhabitants. Monitoring the Covid-19 epidemic in neighboring countries will be useful in deciding on such deconfinement. “
►Full report
To access the full report, click here or below:
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