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.
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 an update on prevailing health workforce initiatives in
light of the second wave of the Covid-19 epidemic, the Health Services Board
said 500 nurses and 49 junior doctors have been deployed to institutions that
include United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH), Thorngrove Infectious Diseases
Hospital, Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals and Wilkins Infectious Diseases
Hospital.
All health workers in the public health sector, including
nurses, continue to receive their monthly Covid-19 risk allowances in line with
the low, medium and high-risk categories. The levels of payment are $1 500, $2
250 and $3 750, respectively.
In addition to the risk allowances, health workers continue
to receive the US$75 Covid-19 allowance for all civil servants which is paid in
local currency at the prevailing rate.
All health workers assigned to continuously work in the
RedZone treatment wards are entitled to a monthly RedZone allowance of $6 000.
This outstanding allowance will start being paid together
with the January 2021 salary, back paid to when it was introduced.
In April 2020, the Government introduced a Covid-19 related
insurance scheme, for which eligible health workers are entitled to paid sick
leave extended from 90 days to 6 months on full pay.
All health workers who test positive for Covid-19 will
receive a once-off payment of US$1 650 for Grade E5 and below and US$1 000 for
F Grades, paid in local currency at the prevailing rate.
The infected are also entitled to short falls on medical
aid paid by Government. Government institutions also provide the necessary
medicines, free of charge, for staff on treatment for Covid-19.
In the event that a health worker dies of Covid-19,
beneficiaries will receive the once off payment of either the US$650 or USD $1
000 equivalent in local currency, depending on the grade of the worker and all
other funeral benefits that already existed for civil servants.
In a statement yesterday, Health Services Board (HSB)
executive chairperson Dr Paulinus Sikhosana said the deployments are meant to
ease pressure on public health care institutions.
“The Health Service Board and Ministry of Health and Child
Care have put in place a number of initiatives which include the deployment of
49 junior medical doctors to five central hospitals.
“With Treasury authority, the Health Services Board is
employing an additional 500 nurses,” said Dr Sikhosana.
“The available 200 nurses have already been deployed as
follows — 80 to Parirenyatwa (30 of whom will support Wilkins Infectious
Hospital), 70 to United Bulawayo Hospitals (20 to support Thorngrove Infectious
Disease Hospital) and 50 to Matabeleland South (support surge from border
crossings),” he said. The outstanding 300 will be deployed once information on
those that passed their examinations and registration by the Nursing Council is
available.
“This is in addition to the allocation of additional health
workers to these institutions during the first wave of the epidemic whereby
eight medical doctors, 54 nurses, 24 nurse aides and 24 general hands were
allocated to Parirenyatwa Hospital. During the first wave, UBH was allocated
seven medical doctors, 28 nurses, 12 nurse aides and 12 general hands,” he
said.
Dr Sikhosana said Government is sparing no effort in
encouraging local manufacturers to ramp up the production of personal protective
equipment (PPE). This comes at a time when the Procurement Regulatory Authority
of Zimbabwe has granted the Health Ministry authority to shorten the bidding
time for the procurement of medical oxygen from 20 days to two days.
“We note with great concern that out of close to 50 000
members of the health service, 1 547 health workers are reported to have tested
positive for infection by Covid-19, and that seven are reported to have
succumbed to the infection.
The Board does not take this lightly and puts every effort
to ensure that members are appropriately trained in and practice Infection
Prevention and Control Procedures, are provided with adequate and appropriate
PPE and receive appropriate counselling and support services,” he said.
The HSB is processing payments of the once-off risk
allowances for health workers that have tested positive for Covid-19, as well
as the other related benefits the workers are entitled to, subject to funding
being made available by Treasury.
Contacted for comment, UBH acting chief executive officer
Dr Narcisius Dzvanga said the development was welcome as it would improve the
nurse-to-patient ratio. Chronicle
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