The need to take some additional measures at the roadblocks to strengthen the staff, noted the Minister of Health Konstantinos Ioannou, who in the morning visited the roadblock on Ledra Street and talked to the Police and customs staff. He stated that he would propose specific measures at the meeting at the Foreign Ministry at noon and did not rule out discussing the issue of restricting flights to and from Italy.
He reassured the public once again and stressed that all appropriate measures are being taken, while for the reactions to the operation of quarantine areas in two areas, he stated that these are the result of ignorance. He also appeared reassuring for the students who are returning today from Milan.
Mr. Ioannou said that this is not the first time that roadblocks are inspected to ensure that the instructions given are followed.
"This is not the first visit, two or three more have been made by the Director of Medical Services, I just considered it good and appropriate as I visit and see for myself that our instructions at the roadblocks are followed and yes the procedures are followed, just one of my findings is "It may be necessary at certain roadblocks, such as here in Ledra, for additional staff to deal exclusively with the control of people entering, because there is a lot of traffic and I will suggest it to the Minister of Justice at the meeting at noon," he said.
He added that apart from staffing, the other problem is communication, because some people from third countries do not even understand the leaflets printed in four languages, nor can they speak any of the four languages well.
"We may have to print the information in other languages that meet the roadblock data," he said.
Asked if there is any gap in the questions at the roadblocks in relation to which country they come from, the Minister said that this also happens at the airports of the Republic of Cyprus because someone may come as a transit passenger and does not declare it.
"This includes the issue of social responsibility, but the police have informed me that they check passports, stamps to confirm that what they say (migrants) are valid, but this takes extra time and needs possible and additional staffing, at least in one "Two roadblocks that have more traffic to make an even better assessment", said the Minister.
Asked if all the high-risk countries except China are included in the questionnaire, the Minister answered in the affirmative, saying that the other four countries for which announcements were made yesterday were also included.
For the students returning today from Italy, he stressed that our concern is not only the 12 students from Milan but all the Cypriots coming from Italy. Specifically for the students, he said that at two o'clock today a meeting has been arranged at the Ministry with the parents to explain to them the facts and the fact that they have to limit themselves for 14 days.
Noting that criticisms have been leveled at the issue of self-restraint and that some believe that students should be confined to another area and checked, he said he disagreed and explained that the instructions given by the competent authorities do not even concern self-restraint but to check for symptoms. and if they do not have nothing is provided, nor self-restraint.
"We are the first country yesterday to decide on this measure and I read in the press today that England also decided to adopt it. So the rest of the EU countries have not put any restrictions on visitors returning from northern Italy. We also put this restriction, which is adopted by some other countries in the EU, in total, to quarantine anyone coming from Italy is impossible, because we are talking about hundreds every week, not only the twelve students, but every week has "Two flights from Italy and passengers in transit, there are too many people coming," he explained.
Asked about the possibility of restricting flights to and from Italy, the Minister said that all possibilities are being studied.
"We, as the Ministry of Health, must and must make an assessment of the situation, and I will inform my colleagues and the Ministries involved if and when this becomes a pandemic, and we will discuss all possibilities," he said.
Regarding the reactions of the residents of the villages in which quarantine areas will operate, Mr. Ioannou said that there is absolutely no reason for concern.
He said that people who have come into contact with a confirmed incident, people who do not have the symptoms, will be transported there. He explained that according to experts, when someone shows symptoms in the next 48 hours, the virus is contagious. So, he explained, those who do not have the symptoms and are asymptomatic will be transported to these areas as a precaution, will be monitored daily by a doctor and if they show symptoms then they are transported immediately to the hospital.
"So with their transport to the hospital they can not transmit the virus and so there is absolutely no cause for concern, to emphasize what I have been saying for a week is that other countries have taken similar measures in populated areas, not isolated, such as "England was chosen as a hotel in Heathrow, in France two hotels in Provence and so the same measures we take and try to find as isolated areas as possible, the same measures are taken by other countries and there is absolutely no cause for concern," he said.
He added that with the decision of the Minister tomorrow, an open meeting will be arranged on Friday and officials will inform the affected communities, expressing the view that these reactions stem from ignorance.
Remarking that the briefing should precede, the Minister said that wherever we go we would have the same problem. "We must understand that it is a matter of public health and our primary concern is the protection of the entire population of Cyprus and you realize that if we do not go to Cannabis and go to Paphos, Paphos will shout, wherever we go there will be a reaction and this reaction comes from ignorance ", he stressed.
For the students from Milan, and whether they should be transported to these places to allay the concerns, the Minister wondered why not transfer all the passengers to the plane.
"Are we going to quarantine all 200? This is not provided for in the protocol, they are provided to be checked for symptoms and we suggest self-restraint and a brochure will be given for the measures they must take and a note for their work and supporting documents for the students. "These are provided for all passengers and not just for the twelve students," he said.
Regarding some complaints from parents that the students were not restricted and that they visited a water park and took a walk in the city, the Minister said that the Ministry of Health is not in direct contact with the students and their companions and that if they were not restricted, this concerns the measures taken by the Italy as a country. "And let this concern us about what we are doing as a country that for three weeks now has been implementing the strictest protocols at airports and roadblocks and elsewhere. "So I can not express my opinion on how each country handles its incidents," he stressed.
Regarding the shortages of masks and antiviral drugs, he said that the Ministry has already taken action.
"Due to the outbreak of the virus there is a shortage everywhere and large quantities have been absorbed by China. This is an issue that was raised in the Council of Health Ministers two weeks ago, and we as a small country insisted that there be a joint supply of supplies and antiviral drugs and EU mechanisms to address this request have already been activated.
We expect the EU institutions to supply the countries, but when it is not up to us, but we know that for our hospitals there is enough for the health professionals because we have to protect them to handle the incidents from there and beyond. "For the general public, you realize the shortage is global," he said.
Source: KYPE