Mutare City Council’s infectious hospital is ill equipped to handle cases of the novel coranavirus as it needs almost US$400 000 to be refurbished Mayor Blessing Tandi has said.
Tandi made the remarks yesterday in Mutare at a press conference on the state of preparedness of Mutare City Council in dealing with Coronavirus (COVID19), that Mutare Infectious Diseases Hospital (MIDH) needs renovations.
He said in a situation of a suspected case, the individual will be transported to Wilkins Hospital in the capital for testing, isolation and further management.
“A financial resource mobilization for Mutare infectious disease hospital is being done so that it meets the standard of being a safe isolation unit.
“In the event of a suspected case, the individual will be transported to Wilkins Hospital for testing isolation and further management.
“We need at US$400 000 to renovate the Mutare infectious Hospital, for it to be suitable to accommodate patients,” said Tandi.
Tandi also revealed that the municipality is recruiting nurses to ensure that the MIDH is staffed by competent personnel nurses to deal with Covid 19 cases.
“Human resource mobilization and capacitation has been enhanced, nursing staff are on the high priority list for recruitment.
“Those already in post are undergoing training on case management and infection control protocols.
“We are doing community engagement and sensitization through health promotion programmes to raise awareness is currently ongoing through all the 19 wards.
“We are also robustly engaging with our residents through our social media platforms, we also have a rapid response team which is in place and alert mode,” he said
The mayor also said raised concern over the porous Zimbabwe-Mozambique Forbes border post, where thousands of illegal migrants pass through without hindrance as a threat to the nation.
“We are concerned with our porous border post, we have put measures at the border, we have put an isolation unit at the border, we have put strict measures at the border as people pass they are monitored,” he said.
