NAIROBI, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's ministry of health on Tuesday confirmed that nine additional cases have tested positive to coronavirus, bringing the total number of COVID-19 cases to 59.
Mercy Mwangangi, chief administrative secretary in the Ministry of Health, said that the cases were part of the 234 samples that were tested by medical personnel in the last 24 hours.
"We are in the process of tracing contacts of the nine cases. So far, total close contacts reported were 1,658 and out of this number, 508 have been discharged after completing 14-day mandatory follow-up," Mwangangi told journalists in Nairobi.
Mwangangi disclosed that a team of medical personnel is monitoring 1,163 contacts of the confirmed cases.
She said that besides Mbagathi Hospital isolation facility that has 120-bed capacities, Kenyatta University Teaching and Referral Hospital is also ready for use with a 300-bed capacity.
"We are looking at the possibility of turning some boarding schools into isolation units in the near future should the situation worsens," Mwangangi.
She told county governments to help identify viable institutions in readiness for use in the event that the number of people tested positive continue to rise.
The official said the ministry is in the process of hiring additional 1,000 health workers to assist the current staff.
She revealed that the government is in talks with local industries to help manufacture urgently required medical equipments to hasten the management of the condition of people who test positive.
