Entebbe and Naguru hospitals designated for Coronavirus management

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Ministry of Health has revealed that as part of the measures to control the spread of the coronavirus they are equipping Entebbe and Naguru regional referral hospitals to handle any suspected cases if they arise.

In a press statement, issued on Wednesday Dr Charles Olaro, the Ag. Director-General of Health services said even as Uganda has not registered any case whether confirmed or suspected, they are on high alert since a number of Ugandans continue going to China and others coming into the country.

Among other measures the Ministry is considering or has put in place are screening points at the airport, a national task force has been activated to handle any arising cases and that they are together with Civil Aviation Authority-CAA planning a sensitization exercise for all airport staff on the risk of spread and the signs and symptoms.

Olaro said the ministry has held a meeting with the Chinese ambassador and during the meeting, Olaro says that the ambassador said they had issued a notice to Chinese hoping to travel here to delay their return and those in Uganda to first delay their travel.

While there are no confirmed cases in the East African region so far, at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on Tuesday, a Kenyan student who was travelling from China was isolated after airport health teams suspected him to have symptoms of the disease.

According to Kenya authorities, tests had been done on the student and results are to be released in two days.

Elsewhere outside China, however, some 56 cases have so far been confirmed in Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Singapore, Australia, Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, Nepal, Sri Lanka, USA, Canada, France and Germany.

A person with Coronavirus, experts say present with flu-like symptoms, fever, cough, and shortness in breath and in severe cases the sufferer develops pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome and kidney failure. However, the strain of coronavirus currently spreading is new and hasn’t been previously identified in humans.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the World Health Organisation-WHO revealed that their scientists are studying the samples provided by the government of China to understand the virus better and establish ways to limit its transmission.

While the current understanding of the disease remains limited, most cases reported to date have been milder, with around 20% of those infected experiencing severe illness”, reads a statement from WHO.

So far, 4593 cases have been registered and 106 deaths in China.

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