Covid -19: Twenty more medics to be deployed at Mutukula border
This photo taken on April 24, 2020 shows a cargo truck and some ambulances from Uganda and Tanzania on standby at Mutukula border post to help evacuate suspected Covid-19 patients to hospitals. PHOTO BY ISSA ALIGA
What you need to know:
- By Sunday, Tanzania had recorded 299 coronavirus infections with seven under specialized care.
The Ministry of Health is set to deploy at least 20 health workers to beef up the team currently screening transit cargo truck drivers entering the country at Mutukula border post in Kyotera District.
The move, according to Dr Edward Muwanga, the Kyotera District health officer is aimed at reducing the pressure exerted on the existing medics who are overwhelmed by the big number of truck drivers being screened for Covid-19 pandemic at the border point.
“Only 10 health workers have been working at the border and they have been overwhelmed by the big number of people they are supposed to attend to daily. So we are going to recruit more health workers on temporally basis to beef up the team,” he said during an interview on Sunday.
Dr Muwanga said the health workers will include; lab technicians, nurses, clinical officers, records assistants and counsellors.
“Before deploying them [medics], we will ensure that they get training on how to handle Covid-19 suspected cases while at the border,” he added.
They are expected to start work next week, according to Dr Muwanga.
Since 2017, there has been a remarkable increase in volumes of transit cargo through Mutukula border ever since it became a one-stop border post, which operates 24 hours daily.
On average 100 cargo trucks enter Uganda through Mutukula border daily. Transit goods and travelers exiting through Mutukula to either Tanzania or Uganda stop once for clearance by immigration and customs officials.
By Monday morning about 24 transit cargo truck drivers had been confirmed to have the virus after four more rested positive for Covid-19, bringing Uganda’s total number of confirmed cases to 79.
By Sunday, Tanzania had recorded 299 coronavirus infections with seven under specialized care. Ten people have died, while those who have recovered stood at 48. The cases are spread out across mainland Tanzania and semi-autonomous island of Zanzibar, with commercial hub Dar es Salaam reporting most cases.
