COVID-19 positive learners to stay in quarantine until confirmed negative

COVID-19 positive learners who were on isolation before schools closed on Thursday will continue staying in those facilities until they are confirmed negative, a measure which has been taken to curb the spread of the prevalent Omicron variant.
Bulawayo Provincial Medial Director Dr Maphios Siamuchembu said the Ministry of Health and Child Care has decided that every learner on isolation continues the process even after the closure of schools.
As at Wednesday, Zimbabwe had recorded 182 057 cases 130 920 recoveries and 4 759 deaths.
“As schools close, those children who are in isolation because they have tested positive for COVID-19 will remain in their current isolation facilities until the end of their isolation period. My office regrets any inconvenience caused, but we cannot knowingly allow infected people to go around spreading the infection,” said Dr Siamuchembu.
He encouraged parents to be patient as the Ministry cannot allowed infected people to go into the community until they test negative.
Over the last two weeks, the country has seen a 472 percent surge in new Covid-19 cases with 28904 of those being recorded last week alone compared to 5055 cases recorded during the previous week.
The rapid rise also affected school going learners and some were forced to undergo isolation whilst doing their studies in boarding schools.
St Christopher Primary School in Gwanda has also shut down after 28 learners tested positive early this week.
Lupane State University and Masvingo Teachers College, among other higher learning institutions, have also not been spared.
Dr Siamuchembu said members of the public should continue practicing social distancing, hand hygiene and wearing masks.
“We did see this coming and all we can do is urge people to get vaccinated so that peradventure they contract the virus, they will not develop severe diseases. The pandemic is still with us and requires that we all be vigilant,” added Dr Siamuchembu.