‘You cannot fight a fire blindfolded’: WHO chief blasts slow virus testing response

(United Nations News) “The most effective way to prevent infections and save lives, is breaking the chains of transmission. And to do that, you must test and isolate”, said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, at Monday’s COVID-19 press briefing, held at the UN health agency’s headquarters in Geneva: “Once again, our message is: test, test, test.”

The WHO has repeatedly decried a lack of urgency on the part of many countries when it comes to testing, isolation and contact tracing (i.e. carefully monitoring people who are in close contact with someone who has been infected).

In his Monday briefing, Tedros acknowledged the rapid escalation in social distancing measures worldwide, which include many more school closures, the cancelling of sporting events and, in some countries, the closure of businesses where people congregate, such as restaurants, bars, cinemas, and theatres.

However, simply following guidelines for personal behaviour (such as social distancing, regular handwashing and coughing into your elbow) are, said Tedros, simply not enough to “extinguish the pandemic”.

Read more at: United Nations News