A TOTAL of 10 people were tested for Covid-19 in
Matabeleland North province after they came into contact with the 38-year-old
resident of the resort town who was the first to test positive of the virus
almost a fortnight ago.
Health authorities traced all his possible contacts and
specimens were collected from those reached. Matabeleland North Provincial Medical Director Dr Purgie
Chimberengwa said the man remains the only confirmed positive case in the
province after the other 10 tested negative.
He however bemoaned longer turnaround periods caused by
suspension of airlines as the province now sends specimens by road to Harare.
“The first confirmed case in Zimbabwe was reported on a
resident of Victoria Falls who had visited United Kingdom. He had a mild
respiratory symptom and was put on symptomatic treatment and is recovering well
from the illness.
“Contacts of the confirmed case were identified and
specimens were collected from them. The
province managed to send 11 specimens to National Microbiology Reference
Laboratory (NMRL) in Harare and 10 came out negative including the ones that
had been sent by road,” said Dr Chimberengwa.
The last two specimens were sent by road to Harare on
Thursday and results came back negative on Saturday, said Dr Chimberengwa.
“The turnaround period for getting results will be longer
as airlines have suspended flights into Victoria Falls. We used to fly the specimens when airlines
were still available but now, we send them by road. We preserve them in triple
packaging for safety before sending,” he said.
He said Hwange District is the epicentre of Covid-19 in the
province because of tourism activities in Victoria Falls and construction at
Sino Hydro in Hwange where there are scores of Chinese.
“All the specimens were from Hwange District which is why
most of our efforts are focused on the district.
Dr Chimberengwa said Hwange district has a designated
ambulance and has been allocated 50 percent of disinfectants received a few
days ago from Government and its partners, with the other six districts in the
province sharing the remaining half.
Travelers are being screened at ports of entry with those
requiring follow-up being monitored.
Dr Chimberengwa said the current challenge is
non-disclosure of correct information by travelers possibly due to fear of
being quarantined.
He said health teams are working flat out to follow-up on
those put on self-quarantine.
“As a province we have competent staff that is collecting
specimens which we are sending for processing. Currently we are left with two
viral culture and transport media in Victoria Falls and we are in the process
of getting more from the head office.
“We received some disinfectants and PPE that we have
started distributing to all districts and of these, 50 percent will go to
Hwange while the other half will be shared by other districts,” highlighted Dr
Chimberengwa.
He said efforts are being made to capacitate the NMRL at
Mpilo Central Hospital supported by the National University of Science and
Technology to do testing for Covid-19 in Bulawayo and improve laboratory
turnaround time than to continue sending specimens to Harare for laboratory
confirmation and tests.
All districts in the province have been tasked are to
identify temporary isolation facilities specifically for Covid-19 suspected
cases before they are referred to an appropriate isolation facility. Each
district needs a designated ambulance, it has been recommended.
Two provincial facilities have been identified in Victoria
Falls for isolation and case management Covid-19 at ZAP Building and Mkhosana
Clinic.
A Victoria Falls Taskforce team made of up private sector
players and chaired by the municipality has been put in place to mobilise
resources and raise awareness among residents as well as prepare the two sites.
Sensitization of communities is ongoing across the province
while information, education and counseling material on Covid-19 including in
vernacular, were distributed to all districts, said Dr Chimberengwa.
The first case of Covid-19 was reported in China’s Wuhan
province on the 30th of December and the deadly virus has spread to every
continent. Chronicle
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