Hotspot awareness increased in Themba and Pacs
Special attention is being given to Thembalethu and Pacaltsdorp, two hotspot areas where the rate of Covid-19 infection has increased dramatically through community transmission.
George municipal communications chief
Chantel Edwards-Klose says a dedicated multi-disciplinary Covid-19 task team led by George Municipality is promoting awareness in these communities in an effort to reduce community transmission of Covid-19 and the morbidity and mortality of vulnerable people. They aim to promote the adherence to the Covid-19 regulations and health protocols in general.
One of the methods is a trailer banner which will move around to different streets within an area. Posters are also being put up on lamp poles. "These are supplemented by community radio advertising campaigns, outreaches that include outside radio broadcasts, the handing out of flyers, and an active social media campaign," says EdwardsKlose.
Regular disinfection of public areas is furthermore undertaken by the Garden Route District Municipality in combination with outreach programmes implemented by their environmental health practitioners. Localised hotspots have also been identified in Knysna and Mossel Bay. Hotspots are identified by means of the Western Cape Provincial Government's dashboard, that keeps track of the number of reported Covid-19 cases on a daily basis. The dashboard shows the number of tests done, deaths reported, and the number of recoveries. It categorises the Western Cape districts by the number of infections, monitoring the trends in infections, deaths and recoveries.
Hotspot strategies implemented in George and the Garden Route have been developed by National Government and Western Cape Government. "The premise is to get people to stay at home unless necessary to travel, to maintain physical distance outside the home, to always use a mask, and to maintain hygiene. The awareness is coupled with the targeted screening and testing of vulnerable people,” says Edwards-Klose. "Criticism of the targeted awareness is noted on social media and it is important to stress that this is not about stigmatising a particular area.
“This is being done to protect the community members living in that area by ensuring that they are aware that there is a high infection rate within their area and that they need to take extra care."
To view Covid-19 statistics per town and per suburb, visit https://coronavirus.westerncape. gov.za/covid-19-dashboard.