3. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION / RESPONSE INTERVENTIONS
EPIDEMIOLOGY & SURVEILLANCE
e Case definitions as of 20 March 2020:
Suspect case:
A. A patient with acute respiratory illness (fever and at least one sign/symptom of
respiratory disease, e.g., cough, shortness of breath), AND a history of travel to or
residence in a location reporting community transmission of COVID-19 disease
during the 14 days prior to symptom onset;
OR
B. A patient with any acute respiratory illness AND having been in contact with a
confirmed or probable COVID-19 case (see definition of contact) in the last 14
days prior to symptom onset;
OR
C. A patient with severe acute respiratory illness (fever and at least one
sign/symptom of respiratory disease, e.g., cough, shortness of breath; AND
requiring hospitalization) AND in the absence of an alternative diagnosis that
fully explains the clinical presentation.
Probable case: A suspect case for whom testing for COVID-19 is inconclusive.
Inconclusive being the result of the test reported by the laboratory
Confirmed case: A person with laboratory confirmation of COVID-19 infection,
irrespective of clinical signs and symptoms.
e Surveillance activities
* Daily pillar and intra-pillar discussions are held to deliberate daily progress,
gaps and way forward;
= Contact tracing is ongoing (see table 2)
= Call centre continue operations for 24 hours per day.
= People under mandatory quarantine are being monitored daily (see table 3)
« Training is ongoing in Erongo region for surveillance and contact tracing until
4 April 2020. Two regions (Omusati, and Oshana) have not attended
surveillance training. The virtual training platform for surveillance training are
underway for Omusati, and Oshana
= Session on contact tracing and Case Investigation Form for health care
workers throughout Namibia provided on 2 & 3 April 2020 using ECHO
platform
