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Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Reporter
WHEN Covid-19 broke out early last year Bulawayo was not ready to admit patients but fast forward to a year later, collective effort by Government, citizens, corporates and other stakeholders in renovating health institutions has changed the narrative.
Bulawayo Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Judith Ncube yesterday revealed how nightmarish it was for Bulawayo, as the city braced for Covid-19 while resource constrained.
Minister Ncube said unity of purpose helped Bulawayo escape a “Covid-19 tsunami” after health institutions were renovated. She was speaking at Thorngrove Infectious Disease Hospital where the city received a donation to equip the Covid-19 isolation ward.
The ward was built last year and in January it started admitting patients.
Although still needing touch ups to meet all the requirements, patients have somewhere to be admitted to when the need arises. Thorngrove became the second public hospital in Bulawayo to cater for Covid-19 patients after United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH)’s Old Bartley Memorial Block (BMB) which opened at the end of last year.
Thorngrove yesterday received state-of-the-art equipment worth US$81 000 which includes 10 intensive care unit (ICU) beds, 30 manual beds, 30 hospital bedside lockers, hospital cardiac tables and resuscitation trolleys from the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA).
OSISA also donated personal protective equipment for frontline workers among other hospital consumables.
Bulawayo Health Services director Dr Edwin Sibanda said the city has reached a milestone in its Covid-19 hospital preparedness.
“Today we received purpose-built beds for the ICU and the general ward beds which are easier to manipulate and move around and they are hypothetically better than the beds that we had. This is courtesy of donation of OSISA fronted by Siphosami Malunga and other people who linked to the City of Bulawayo in one way or the other but based in South Africa,” said Dr Sibanda.
He commended the seamless co-ordination among citizens in rehabilitating health centres.
“We have to congratulate Zimbabweans, people of Bulawayo for actually coming together to make sure that at least we have somewhere where we can manage patients, somewhere decent and reasonably equipped for the level of care that the hospital is designated for. We know we can have ICU with ventilators across the city but the majority of the people may not need ventilators and Mater Dei Hospital is available for those who can afford and UBH is on the way to be a state-of-the-art hospital with ability to attend to severe to critical cases.
We hope that the synergy between the two hospitals and the coming in of Ekusileni Medical Centre will probably ensure that there are enough ICU beds for the city. Therefore, in case the third wave hits us we will not be afraid as we were before,” he said.
Speaking during the donation handover ceremony, Bulawayo Mayor Councillor Solomon Mguni commended stakeholder involvement in the Covid-19 fight in Bulawayo.
“The battle against Covid-19 will be won when we all join in the fight together. The unity of purpose is shown through the various partners that have come on board to assist council in ensuring we had enough personal protective clothing and hospital equipment to cater for the admitted and patients at home.
These partnerships have sustained the city for the past year and they continue to do so. Today, we receive this donation from OSISA also at a time when we have opened the refurbished Thorngrove Isolation Ward for admission of Covid-19 patients,” said Cllr Mguni.
“It is a shot in the arm for the City of Bulawayo, the province and the residents of this great City of Kings. We receive the state-of-the-art hospital beds, equipment and personal protective clothing for the health care staff which will ensure that the patients admitted at the hospital have the greatest comfort.
The consignment is key in ensuring that we provide quality health services for the City of Bulawayo which is important in the upholding of human rights.”
Minister Ncube commended OSISA for the donation and urged members of the public to continue observing Covid-19 prevention measures.
She said it was worrying that while authorities were strengthening Covid-19 prevention measures some members of the public were deliberately not adhering to prevention measures.
“Last year, we were taken by surprise when Covid-19 broke out, I don’t think Dr Sibanda and his team enjoyed their sleep. They were worried where to admit those who would be affected by Covid-19. Although we took a position that we should refurbish one institution we were afraid of what could happen if the worst came to the worst. But what I’m grateful about is that as Bulawayo we agreed that we invite God in everything we did.
We agreed to seek guidance of the Holy Spirit to lead us and we escaped the Covid-19 and you can actually feel God’s grace. Hence, today come today in admiration of the work that has been done. Even those who work here the environment is inviting them to come execute their duties without any challenges,” she said.
Minister Ncube commended frontline workers for their commitment and putting their lives on the line as the country battled Covid-19.
“Their commitment has even seen Government putting health workers among the first people to be vaccinated under the vaccination programme being rolled out at the moment,” said Minister Ncube. — @nqotshili.
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