Four staff members at Masaka District offices have tested positive for Covid-19. Masaka regional referral hospital director, Mr Nathan Onyachi, said the four have been admitted to the facility’s virus treatment centre.
“Four members of Masaka district staff have tested positive and we have started contact tracing and testing among the other district officials as well as isolating the contacts,” he said.
Dr Onyachi blamed the continuous spread of the virus to public complacency evidenced by people who no longer care to wear face masks, observe social distancing, among other preventive measures. He implored Ugandans to practice the preventive measures at individual level even when at their homes so as to contain the spread of the pandemic.
The Masaka Resident District Commissioner, Mr Herman Ssentongo who is also the head of the virus task force said that the results from contacts and other staff members will guide their decision on whether to close the district offices or some departments.
“As of now, our health teams are taking samples from contacts and all district workers so as to determine the wideness of the spread among the contacts. This will guide our decision on the way forward,” he said.
Mr Ssentongo said they have been warning the public to be conscious and follow the Ministry of Health guidelines due to complacency of some people.
He revealed that the health teams in Masaka have already buried four people in the region who died of the virus from Kampala. So far, government has registered 46 Covid-19 related deaths since March this year when the virus outbreak was confirmed in Uganda.
Masaka regional referral hospital has since March this year admitted 84 cases, 74 of whom were treated and discharged. The facility now has 10 virus patients on admission.
The development comes just hours after authorities in Kampala said they had temporarily closed Kawempe Police Station for disinfection after a 15-year-old defilement suspect tested positive for Coronavirus.
The Ministry of Health Wednesday confirmed 201 new Covid-19 infections as Uganda’s confirmed cases rose to 4,101 with 1,876 recoveries and 46 deaths since March 2020 when the pandemic outbreak was confirmed in the country.
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Daily Monitor