COVID-19: Rising To The Challenge
The Coronavirus pandemic has hit the globe like a storm, as countries all over have had their own share of the outbreak. Various sectors of the economy have been affected. The health sector is worse hit, with over 800 health workers already tested positive to the virus. In this special report, AUSTIN AJAYI writes on the effect of COVID-19 on healthcare delivery in Adamawa state.
The year 2020 will go down in history as one trying year in the century perhaps it is one of the greatest challenges the world had to content with in the last decade.
Since the last Spanish influenza pandemic in 1918, there were reports had it that over 50 million people lost their lives with Nigeria, having its share of deaths.
The world witnessed such pandemic until late last when a virus called Corona broke out in the Wuhan in the Peoples Republic of China.
The index case in Nigeria was recorded in Lagos in February 2020. As at today, the virus had been recorded in 35 States and Abuja totaling over ten thousand positive cases with over three thousand successful treated while the death toll raising to over thirty in the country.
In Adamawa state, the health workers and the hospitals have their own challenge.
The Chief Medical Director, Specialist hospital, Yola Dr. Dauda Wadinga said the pandemic made the management of the hospital to take decisions that helped to control and check the virus from affecting health worker in the state.
According him, the management had to close the outdoor patients and created an avenue where patients can see doctors without direct contact, while the accident and emergency unit was allowed to work with strict compliance to all the safety rules.
As soon as the pandemic broke out in the country, we went out sensitization of our health personnel, the hospital had to deal with COVID-19 patients as well as other patients. There was great challenge, but with the support of Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri we were able to deal with the problem.
On how has the pandemic affected the discharge and the attitude of patients in the hospital, the medical director said, “The number of patients in the hospital has reduced, as we are confronted and having training and educating them on the need to stay safe and obey the laid-down rules.
“Apart from the case in Mubi that involves one of our doctors, we have not had any other case.
“In the hospital, we give and provide maximum protection to both the patients and our staff though, there is fall in the number of patients.
“We have also been educating our staff both administrative and medical on the need to obey all the laid-down rules.”
Another healthcare provider, and owner of one of the best private hospitals in the state. Dr. Brutus Chagwa, said the pandemic has affected patronage since as patients no longer visit hospitals for checkups even when they are sick. Some of them, Chagwa added, would rather die than go to the hospital.
“We have been observing all the rules to prevent the spread of the pandemic in the state, but the number of out patients has reduced,” he said.
