Our goal is to immediately interrupt the chain of virus transmission: Nanushyan

The number of coronavirus infections is increasing worldwide. As of March 16, there are over 167,000 laboratory-confirmed cases, of which nearly 3,200 have resulted in death. This was stated today during a meeting with journalists by Armenia's Deputy Minister of Health Lena Nanushyan.

She emphasized that no country is guaranteed to be free from the penetration of the coronavirus. "Countries, including Armenia, are taking measures to reduce the number of cases that may be recorded in the country and to prepare for implementing measures so that the response to the spread of the virus is effective," she said.

Nanushyan also addressed the incident of infection registered at one of the factories in Shengavit. "Regardless of where the case is identified, our staff are conducting work to ensure epidemiological surveillance and the identification of contacts. They determine who the laboratory-confirmed patient has been in contact with, and as a result of identifying these contacts, people are isolated and quarantined. This applies to all of our confirmed cases. The surroundings of any positive cases are immediately identified and isolated for a 14-day period," she noted.

According to the deputy minister, the infection rate of the coronavirus is not as high as that of measles, almost equating it to that of the flu virus. "Nevertheless, we draw the circle and isolate individuals, observing if they will develop symptoms over the course of 14 days. The goal is to immediately interrupt the chain of virus transmission," she stated.