 Fellow citizens of St. Lucia, the government of St. Lucia has dedicated 2020 as a year of health in St. Lucia. While we at the Department of Health and Wellness are aggressively pursuing strategic initiatives which include physical and economic access to health for the people of St. Lucia in keeping with the median-term development strategy. In late 2019 the world was caught off guard by a new virus called COVID-19 which to date has ravaged many countries in the world and touched most of the others. As a result of the global outbreak of COVID-19 the World Health Organization WHO on March 12th 2020 declared the outbreak a pandemic. Currently global leaders are grappling with this infectious disease which threatens the social economic health and overall well-being of countries. For us in St. Lucia it has resulted in the major reprioritization and redistribution of government resources to fight this emerging global threat. One of the key policy decisions that was taken was to accelerate the move to the Owen King European Union Hospital and to use the Victoria Hospital as a respiratory hospital to deal with this highly infectious disease. Following the announcement of this decision the management and staff of the Victoria Hospital have been working very hard to make this move a reality. Before we delve further into the full transition which will commence from Wednesday March 25th 2020 I wish to thank the hard-working team who are fighting this epidemic while simultaneously ensuring that all preparatory activities to facilitate a smooth and safe transition to the OKEU are implemented. We at the Department of Health would like to inform the fellow St. Lucia's that this week will be an historic moment for us in St. Lucia while we do not want to take away from the serious focus of COVID-19 transitioning to a new hospital is a very rare occurrence and therefore citizens of this country will be part of an historic and special moment in the country's national development. As a resilient people the Department of Health urges everyone to join in its efforts to make this transition a reality. Thank you. Intensive training and preparatory activities will continue in the coming days with different stakeholder groups such as the St. Lucia Fire Service, the Royal St. Lucia Police Force, the National Emergency Management Office NIMO and other government agencies. As stated in an earlier press release staff orientation of the new facility was held last week and team building activities will culminate in a few days. Therefore I want to invite all St. Lucia's sons and daughters of the Helen of the West to join us on this grand occasion. You may ask yourself how can you be part of the process? You can be by participating in the following. One follow the updates on the news and on social media from approved credible sources notably the Office of the Chief Medical Officer, the Bureau of Health Education and the Education and Communication Unit within the Department of Health and Wellness. These briefings will also be aired on GIS, NTN and other local media as well as the Ministry of Health and Wellness Facebook page. Two, add hair to the directives given by the move team. Three, add hair to the traffic control measures that will be implemented by the Royal St. Lucia Police Force. Four, the resources of the state will be heavily involved in the transitioning and COVID-19 activities. Therefore we expect you to discuss within the family how emergency situations will be managed. Five, persons are advised to take extra care of their health particularly during the day of the move from Victoria Hospital to OKUH to avoid or to minimize disruptions in our plans. And finally brothers and sisters, sons and daughters of St. Lucia, pray for the move team to ensure a smooth and safe transitioning of all patients from Victoria Hospital to the Owen King European Union Hospital. To allow for the smooth transition from Victoria Hospital to the Owen King European Union Hospital and from a clinical perspective, please note the following. The Casteries Wellness Center will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Monday, March 23, 2020 to Monday, March 30, 2020 except on the Friday, March 27, when it will be open until 8 p.m. This is to manage non-emergency cases to facilitate the ramping down of services at the Victoria Hospital. The Grosselat Polyclinic will remain open from 8 a.m. to midnight from Monday, March 23, 2020 to Monday, March 30, 2020 and this will include the weekend. Lab X-ray and pharmacy services will remain available at the Grosselat Polyclinic during this period. St. Jude Hospital will be assisting Victoria Hospital with management of the emergency cases from Monday, March 23, 2020 to Sunday, March 29, 2020 to protect the public, patients and staff from COVID-19 which is a public health emergency of international concern. The Victoria Hospital management is encouraging that children below the age of 10 years and adults above 60 years to not visit the hospital during the time of COVID-19. The visiting hours will continue in the morning from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m. in the afternoon from 12 noon to 1 p.m. However, the 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. shift will now only be for one hour from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. We are also asking to limit to two visitors per patient that is admitted and we are encouraging persons to wash and sanitize their hands before and after visiting the patients and to continue to observe cough etiquette.