Coronavirus: New case confirmed in Monmouthshire

A new case of coronavirus has been confirmed in Monmouthshire. It brings the current total of cases in the county to 5.

Dr Giri Shankar, Incident Director for the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak response at Public Health Wales, said:

“We can confirm that 34 new cases have tested positive for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 94.

“Public Health Wales is working within the phased approach to tackling the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outlined in the UK Coronavirus Action Plan - to contain, delay, research and mitigate.

“We are working with our partners in the Welsh Government, the wider NHS in Wales, and others now that we have entered the ‘delay’ phase.  This is now not just an attempt to contain the disease, as far as possible, but to delay its spread.

“The advice for the public changed.  People no longer need to contact NHS 111 if they think they may have contracted Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).  Instead, anyone who has a high temperature or a new continuous cough should stay at home for seven days.  They should not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital. 

“They should only contact NHS 111 if they feel they cannot cope with their symptoms at home, their condition gets worse, or their symptoms do not get better after seven days.”

“The public play an important role in this new phase. By following the latest advice, you will protect yourself, protect the most vulnerable, and delay and flatten the peak, which will reduce the pressure on NHS Wales and minimise the impact of the virus.

“The move into the ‘delay’ phase, will include working closely with health boards, NHS 111 and the Welsh Government towards transitioning away from community testing and contact tracing. Testing will now focus on cases admitted to hospital, in line with national guidance, and based on symptoms and severity.      

“The move away from community testing gives us greater capacity to test in hospital settings, where the most vulnerable patients will be cared for.

“While there is no longer a need to identify every case through community testing, we will still need to and will be able to report on Novel Coronavirus level in Wales. In a similar way to our seasonal flu reporting, we will be undertaking routine Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) surveillance which will help us understand the picture in Wales. 

We will therefore continue in the short term to report numbers of confirmed cases, which will give us some indication of the picture in Wales.

The table below shows the number of cases by local authority as of today Sunday, 15 March. Please note that at the time of publishing, the residential area of 9 of the confirmed cases today were still being confirmed.