By Duncan Mlanjira
In this second wave of COVID-19 that has hit the country in the past few days of this new year, some of the response services such as the emergency toll free numbers are not working, some of the test sites have run out of testing equipment while some testing centres are non-functional.
Some of the isolation centers have only 20 beds. On Wednesday morning Ministry of Health spokesperson Joshua Malango confirmed to Times 360 Malawi that COVID-19 cases have overwhelmed Kamuzu Central Hospital’s isolation centre in Lilongwe, forcing the health authorities there to send some patients to Bwaila Hospital.
The KCH isolation centre has a bed capacity of 20 beds and as of Tuesday evening, out of the registered 175 new COVID-19 cases, 54 were admitted in six hospitals — 20 at KCH, 18 at Queen Elizabeth Central, 11 at Bwaila, two at Mzuzu Central, two at Balaka District Hospital and one at Zomba Central Hospital.
Health Minister at Queen Elizabeth Central
Hospital on Wednesday
Also on Wednesday, Minister of Health, Khumbize Kandodo Chiponda made an impromptu visit to Queen Elizabeth to appreciate how the management there is managing issues of space at the isolation centre and also challenges face at the laboratory testing.
Posting on Facebook on Wednesday, Lyson Sibande disclosed that he hadn’t been feeling well for a week and went to a private clinic where they tested him for malaria whose results were negative.
Sibande, the concerned citizen
He was given some medicine for the cough, sore throat and body pains which he had been suffering but still he wasn’t improving as he was now having difficulties to sleep due some pains.
“So I decided to call the [toll free] 54747 to get tested for COVID-19, just in case, to be sure since I have a wife and kids,” he said. “I called the number several times, the COVID-19 response team did not respond.
“I went to Partners in Hope Hospital where someone had told me that they do tests but the receptionist there told me they stopped [providing that service].
The toll free number that’s not operational
“Today morning, I rushed to KCH [but] I was told they only test travellers and admitted patients. They referred me to Bwaila Hospital since it’s a district hospital [but there they told me] they have run out of some equipment for testing. People have been sent back home to come another day.
“You just have to love my country. Tili pheeee! masiku nkumapita (we just don’t seem to care). We put an emergency toll free number that can’t work, we run out of testing equipment, we have some non-functioning testing centers, we have only 20 beds in the isolation center, etc…tilipheee! zosatikhudza,” he lamented.
After the post started attracting scathing responses, Minister Kandodo Chiponda came in asked Sibande to check inbox, saying she had sent a message.
“Sorry for experience,” she said. “Will work on it,” she said but Don Silwamba asked the Health Minister that her response should not be private.
“We all need a word from you on such experiences, because tomorrow it will be me or that one and you will not manage to address us privately,” Silwamba said.
To which Limbikani Thole also agreed, asking Kandodo Chiponda to make that message public as there might be many in need of it and experiencing similar situation as of Lyson Sibande.
The Minister promised to act on the issues Sibande and others commented on but this did not stop people from debating further.
Honest Chirwa suggested to Sibande that he should just had declared that he was travelling, equipped with a passport and willing to pay the exorbitant service charge, maybe he could have been assisted.
“I hope [the fee-paying services for travellers] will not turn into another business. Something needs to be done,” Chirwa said.
Alfred Kilembe conveyed best wishes to Sibande and went on to say: “That is where I am not convinced with leaders who preach patriotism.
“Can we really love our nation and leave it to lack such necessities to that magnitude? What about those who must get to the nearest health facility by foot? What hope remains for them.
“After that, what reason remains in them for patriotism?” he questioned.
Felix Njema Kankhukwa chipped in to say suggested that what this Ministry is doing borders of criminality and is liable to a public lawsuit.
It’s criminal for a full functioning Ministry to provide information to the general public that does not work.
“The Minister should be answerable to this. Let’s try to one one thing that’s working, please,” Kankhukwa said.
In just under week of the new year, the country had a total number of 948 active cases as of Tuesday evening — up from over 38 at the beginning of December.
Then the new cases started rising — 8 on December 12, 3 the next day, 4 on 14th, 10 on 15th, 11 on 16th, 47 on 17th, 10 on 18th, 5 on 19th, 8 on 20th, 41 on 21st and 46 on 22nd and 13 on 23rd.
On Christmas Eve, there were 16, on Christmas Day 62, and 4 on Boxing Day, 11 on Saturday the 27th, 23 on 28, 11 on 29th and 23 on 30th.
The figures then soared to 112 on New Year’s Eve, bringing the total active cases to 505 going into 2021 and now at 948 as of Tuesday in which there were 35 new recoveries, and three new deaths — bringing the total number of deaths at 199 since April.
