Arua Regional Referral hospital has been hit by a shortage of oxygen as the facility struggles to contain cases of the new and more aggressive COVID-19 strain.
Arua hospital director Dr Filbert Nyeko told the area COVID-19 taskforce that the hospital has admitted 58 patients over the last three weeks but lost three of them. At the moment, the facility has 13 patients, seven of whom need oxygen supply.
He says that the rate of consumption of oxygen by those admitted at the isolation centre is overwhelming and requires immediate intervention, cautioning that the situation is likely to get worse if not handled with urgency, yet the facility is also dealing with a shortage of protective equipment and health care workers.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the West Nile region has had 5,880 positive cases admitted in various hospitals of which 292 were admitted at Arua hospital with 258 discharges. The country registered a further 4 new deaths and 842 new COVID-19 cases according to sample test results of June 7.