Panic As Nursing Assistant Tests Positive for COVID-19 in Gulu

There is panic among residents of Paibona Sub County in Gulu district after a nursing assistant at Paibona Health Centre III tested positive for COVID-19.  

The nursing assistant who has now been evacuated to Gulu Regional Referral Hospital COVID-19 Treatment Unit tested positive for the disease on Thursday last week. However before she was tested, she had earlier been mixing and interacting with patients and people in the community. . 

This however raised concerns and fear among the people when they realized that the health worker could have possibly unknowingly been battling the disease while still on duty and interacted with several people.  

Similarly, a COVID-19 test conducted on Monday this week from one person who had sought antenatal care with his wife at Paibona Health Centre III had been treated by the nursing assistant.   He is currently undergoing home-based treatment care at his home in Bombayo Village in Boli Pii Parish alongside his 15 family members who are his primary contacts.

Both persons whose results turned out positive for the COVID-19 had freely mixed with people in the area a day before their respective tests were conducted.   

Richard Watmon, the former Paibona Sub County chairperson, says that people in the area are living in fear and most of them have shunned visiting the health centre for fear of contracting the disease.  

Watmon added that the situation is worse since the Sub County has no functioning COVID-19 Taskforce that would help sensitize the people on the standard operating procedures- SOPs.

Milly Apiyo, a resident of Bombayo says that it is risky for her to seek services at Paibona Health Centre II because she is unaware if it is free of the disease.

The health centre which was temporarily closed due to the positive case was reopened on Monday afternoon.