We brace for day two on a more concerted note, mainly boosted by the parting words of His Majesty The King a few minutes before the clock struck midnight yesterday. We cannot be complacent and let our guard down until we are absolutely sure that all the people of Bhutan are safe from coronavirus.
As we seek your prayers and support, we share a few action plans for the day.
- Our focus on managing the primary case, the 76-year-old American tourist, will only intensify. He was moved to the new isolation building, the ophthalmology suite, which offers better facilities.
- Away from home and petrified with the virus he contracted, it is natural we give him best of our medical services. We also urge all Bhutanese to pray for his health and recovery.
- It was a welcome news that all 40 suspects tested negative yesterday evening. But as much as we trust our lab experts and the testing procedures, and like many of you shared yesterday, there is no room for apathy in this situation. We will continue to keep them in quarantine until the 14th day, with consistent follow ups from our health workers.
- We are concerned about a suspect in Trashigang, a young woman who displayed flu-like symptoms in recent days. With His Majesty’s command, the samples will be airlifted today to save time and immediately act on it, depending on the outcome.
- The results will be communicated to the people soon after the completion of the test.
- More preparation works are underway to cater to the worse of situations. Alongside, our officials are delving into procurement and financing components, ensuring we use our limited resources in the most sustainable manner.
- Similar to the trend countries across the globe have witnessed, our concerns are big on the impact the reactions to virus will have on our economy. Relevant agencies like Ministry of Finance, economic affairs ministry and RMA are studying ways to minimise impact. Prime Minister has also designated individuals to carry out studies and provide best, practical solutions.
- Meanwhile, we urge our people to practice basic hygiene, exercise prudence and stay away from misinformation. We will provide regular updates from the official channels, mainstream media and social media pages of PMO and the health ministry.