The ManicaPost
Tendai Gukutikwa
Post Correspondent
AT least 200 volunteer community health care workers who will assist in the fight against Covid-19 were last week trained and deployed in Manicaland and Masvingo.
The 200, who are professionals from all walks of life, but mostly health workers, were trained during a two-day workshop in the wake of a spike in Covid-19 cases countrywide.
The volunteers were equipped with tools of the trade that include thermometers, smart phones, sanitisers, disposable latex gloves and airtime to enable them to immediately pass essential information on to Government.
A similar exercise with participants from Mashonaland West, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland Central, Midlands and Harare provinces was also held in Kadoma.
A pre-deployment training of 200 community volunteers which focused on Bulawayo, Matabeleland North and South provinces was concluded in July and the volunteers are already working on their communities.
In an interview with The Manica Post, Director of Epidemiology and Disease Control in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Dr Portia Manangazira said the escalating cases of local transmission calls for intensified awareness, surveillance and action starting within the community, hence the need for more community health workers.
“The training aims to establish linkages between the community volunteers and the local rapid response teams, quarantine centres and isolation facilities. This will help them in finding, testing, isolating, treating cases, quarantining contacts and providing appropriate care within the communities.
“This clearly pointed to the need for additional volunteers to be trained and deployed to cover all identified hot spots within the country’s provinces. We intend to use this additional workforce and support to mobilize all sectors and communities for prevention, suppression and slowing down the transmission of Covid-19 in the country,” said Dr Manangazira.
During the same workshop, President of Zimbabwe National Practitioners Association (ZINPA), Sekuru Friday Chisanyu rubbished claims that traditional healers can Covid-19.
He urged people to follow the World Health Organisation’s prescribed safety guidelines, including hand washing, observing physical distancing and wearing of face masks in public.
ZINPA represents traditional healers, herbalists, birth attendants and faith healers.
