The Covid-19 carrie,r who escaped mandatory quarantine in the Upper West Region, has been arrested.
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The 46-year-old Nigerian, Okafor Chikodi, fled after doctors in the region asked him to self-isolate when he tested positive for the virus.
This brings to three, the number of patients who have escaped under similar circumstance.
Upper West Region Correspondent explained on Joy FM‘s Top Story that Mr Chikodi is currently being held at the Burns Unit of the Upper West Regional Hospital, which has been converted into an isolation centre.
The Regional Commander of the Ghana Police Service, DCOP Francais Aboagye Nyarko told JoyNews messages were sent across various teams about the incident.
He explained that a subsequent tipoff by an informant led to the arrest of Okafor Chikodi.
“Yesterday around 10pm, an informant called me and said he will assist us locate him. Thus morning the informant did a very good job and he really assisted the police to locate the patient,” he told Rafiq Salam on Friday
DCOP Aboagye Nyarko further revealed that the patient had relocated from his home to his friends somewhere around Wa Polytechnic.
7 others, who had come into contact with him while on the run have also been brought in by the Regional Health Directorate for observation and possible testing.
The Upper West Regional Health Directorate Dr Osei Kuffour Afreh was reliefs by the latest development.
He, however, highlighted the need for ample physical space to facilitate the treatment of both suspected and confirmed case in the region.
“We are using one of our main wards for this purpose and that ward carries not more than 10 beds. So we have some people who are suspected cases which we are waiting for their test results. We also have some confirmed cases over there. So just as people are suspected and we don’t want them to go back home, it is also depleting our space,” he said.
According to Dr Afreh the hospital may be overstretched without the needed space if the number of cases are to see an increase.
