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In the absence of a vaccine for the treatment of the COVID-19 in the world, Ghana's case management team, according to the Advisor of Health Matters at the Presidency, Dr Anthony Nsiah-Asare, has resorted to antibiotics and multivitamins to treat COVID-19 patients.

According to him, supportive treatments are given to those who don’t have signs and symptoms of the new coronavirus but those showing signs and symptoms of the virus are given medication to boost their immune systems.

Speaking on Okay FM’s 'Ade Akye Abia' Morning Show, Dr. Nsiah-Asare hinted that patients who may not have any underlying medical condition but are showing signs of the coronavirus are given medications such as vitamins and multivitamins to boost their immune system.

“If the person does not have signs and symptoms, we give the person supportive treatment and if the person exhibits signs and symptoms of the coronavirus, we treat the patients with antibiotics, multivitamins and teach the person what to do to increase the immune system like giving the person multivitamins, vitamins . . . but the most important thing is that the person is advised to practice the social distancing,” he revealed.

He cautioned those who have tested negative to the novel coronavirus to maintain the social distancing protocol and other directives given by President Akufo-Addo to protect other members of the public from contracting the virus as "testing negative does not mean the person is not susceptible to the virus".

Touching on the issue of contact tracing, Dr. Nsiah-Asare reiterated that the medical team is no longer testing people based on signs and symptoms but the mere fact that they have come into contact with those who have tested positive.

“Right now, if you are a contact and we come to you, we won’t look for signs and symptoms before we conduct a test on you and if we find an index, we will advise the person to either undergo self-isolation with the help of doctors and nurse in the house and if the person tests negative, we will advise the person to adhere to the directives of social distancing and the regular observation of personal hygiene as well as avoid touching your faces, noses and mouths,” he explained.

To him, the fear is that 80 percent of Ghanaians can be infected by the coronavirus and may only show mild or no signs and symptoms of the virus; insisting that testing is the only means to find the virus and stop it from spreading.

“I am hopeful that after the two weeks partial lockdown at some parts of the country, Ghanaians would have learnt something new together with the enhanced contact tracing we are doing.

“We want to demonstrate that before a vaccine will be found for the coronavirus, we can protect ourselves from the attack of the virus and that is what every country is doing. We don’t want the situation to get out of hands as it has happened to other big nations that have very strong health systems and yet they are badly hit by the corona virus attack,” he added.