The ManicaPost
Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
SEVERAL health and other essential service provider workplaces around Mutare have become Covid-19 hotspots, with frontline staff contracting the virus from those seeking their services in their line of duty and passing it on to others at a time when overwhelmed health facilities around the city are facing acute shortage of oxygen.
This comes at a time when Government has deployed an additional 500 nurses and 49 junior doctors to five central hospitals that have been designated as Covid-19 centres following a sharp increase in infections.
Since the outbreak of the global pandemic, 1 547 health workers have tested positive and seven have succumbed to the global pandemic across the country.
Health care workers have been tirelessly working on the frontline exposing themselves to the deadly virus which has killed over 500 Zimbabweans.
Globally, deaths are approaching 2 million.
In Mutare, private, local authority and Government hospitals and clinics as well as banking halls are some of the workplaces that have suddenly turned into Covid-19 hotspots.
Investigations by this newspaper revealed that a certain private clinic in the Central Business District (name withheld) has become a Covid-19 hotspot with several cleaners, nurses and a doctor testing positive.
While confirmation of the development could not be obtained from authorities at the clinic, employees who confided in this newspaper, said no improved safety precaution measures were put in place for the safety of staff.
Public social distancing, temperature screening and sanitising are not being practiced.
Further investigations revealed that the place has not been fumigated even after several members of staff tested positive.
Several Covid-19 patients as well those who succumbed to the deadly virus in Mutare have professed having walked into some health institutions negative and only tested positive after contact and interaction with medical personnel.
This is obtaining at a time when Mutare has been hard hit by a serious shortage of oxygen for patients facing serious breathing challenges.
Since late last week, desperate relatives and friends of Covid-19 patients have been knocking on several doors in search of the product which is being sold for US$75 per day for a portable oxygen generator that is needed for a minimum of five days for a patient.
Portable oxygen therapy is being hired out at US$150 per day for a minimum of five days. Oxygen tank is going for US$120 per day and is needed for a minimum of five days.
A portable oxygen concentrator (POC) is a device used to provide oxygen therapy to people who require greater oxygen concentrations than the levels of ambient air. It is similar to a home oxygen concentrator (OC), but is smaller in size and more mobile.
Portable oxygen concentrators (POCs) take air from the room and convert it into concentrated oxygen. Most are lightweight and compact.
Manicaland provincial epidemiology and disease control officer, Dr Munyaradzi Mukuzunga, said: “It is difficult to separate medical personnel from the rest of the public in a pandemic that is affecting the whole community.
“We expect our health personnel to be in their Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) when executing their duties in order to reduce the risk of getting infected. We have not had any challenges in the provision of PPEs in our institutions.”
On oxygen shortage, Dr Mukuzunga, said: “BOC Gases are the ones supplying gas and they are the ones who can easily tell whether there has been a shortage or not. No one expected the sharp increase in the cases of Covid-19 like we are currently experiencing and essentially this means more demand for the product.
“We might say we have enough in stock today and later in the day there will be more demand that outstrips what is in stock.”
BOC Gases numbers went unanswered for the greater part of this week.
Mutare City Council health director, Dr Anthony Mutara, who is also a national member of the Covid-19 response team, said: “The second wave is proving to be lethal than the first one. Most, if not all, health systems are strained.
“We should as a community and people be asking each other what am I going to do to help save lives? We need to try and give as much support as we can to help the private or the public sectors in this response. I am not aware of any particular incidents involving hiding statistics or cases, maybe the Provincial Medical Director may shed more light if at all anyone knows,” said Dr Mutara.
One essential service provider, Agribank had to close its doors to allow fumigation of their premises after two of their employees tested positive. The bank will open tomorrow.
Agribank head of strategy and marketing, Mr Joseph Mberecha, said: “Agribank has 45 branches in all the country’s 10 provinces and we have been carrying out routine Covid-19 mandatory tests in all our branches so that we can protect both our clients as well as our members of staff.
“In Mutare, we have 13 members of staff and out of those, two tested positive. They have since gone into isolation and receiving relevant medication. They were asymptomatic. The branch was fumigated and will be fumigated against after three days.
“We will reopen on Saturday (tomorrow) after the mandatory six-day closure to allow for fumigation and ensure the safety of everyone. No one should panic. We will continue offering quality service to our clients and this process is part of the quality service that we strive to give to our clients.”
