Dr. Yusuf Baseka the District Health Officer-DHO says they don’t have any alternative facility to handle the patient and have advised them to go for home based care.
Kasese District COVID-19 task force is stuck with patients after the regional referral hospital got filled up.
Fort Portal Regional referral hospital was designated to handle
patients from across the Tooro-Rwenzori region as the government decentralised
COVID-19 case treatment centres.
Kasese has recorded over 70
cases in the new wave within two weeks. Dr Yusuf Baseke the Kasese
District Health Officer says they don’t have any alternative facility to handle
the patient and have advised them to go for home-based care.
He says the district is financially incapacitated to create an
emergency quarantine and isolation centres.
Dr Baseke notes that the COVID-19 task force is still making
consultations with the Ministry of Health and other relevant stakeholders to
create a holding centre for the patients.
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Baseke says the numbers of covid-19 cases in Kasese are expected to
rise following the closure of schools which forced learners to return home.
According to Baseke, the district lacks the basic facilities including oxygen
plants to generate oxygen for ill patients.
The district is also considering reopening the isolation centres
at Bwera Hospital, Kilembe mines and Kasese municipal health centres.
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The Kasese Deputy RDC Joshua Masereka advised patients put under
home-based care to adhere to the guidelines.
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Masereka says the District Covid 19 Taskforce has embarked on risk
communication, testing and tracing of contacts to mitigate community
infections.
Brian Kisembo, the
covid 19 focal people for Fort portal City and Kabarole district, says that there
are 22 patients admitted at the treatment unit at Fort Portal referral hospital, while more than 30 cases are
being managed under the home-based care managed.
Kisembo says that the hospital has received a
new consignment of materials for covid 19 testings among which include rapid
diagnostic kits, gloves and an 80-bed capacity tent.
//Cue in: “taking samples…
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However, Kisembo says that the hospital is
facing challenges in the management of the pandemic. He cites the shortage of
ICU Beds, ambulances and identification of new contacts especially those who
deliberately refuse to disclose their status despite having tested positive.
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Major regional referral hospitals are currently failing to address
the increasing demand for space and oxygen with many opting to ration oxygen.
Dr Diana Atwine, the Ministry of Health Permanent Secretary
indicates that they are responding to the challenges by supporting the
hospitals with additional supplies including beds and oxygen cylinders from
Kampala.
