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Uganda Records 10,000 Covid Cases in 10 Days - Uganda Newswire

Uganda Records 10,000 Covid Cases in 10 Days

Up to 69 per cent of the new 15,248 Covid-19 cases detected countrywide were reported in the last 10 days, Daily Monitor has established.

The statistics from the Ministry of Health for the last 10 days (June 3-12) indicate that 10,491 cases were reported, compared to the previous 10 days (May 24-June 2), where only 4,757 cases were reported. The cumulative total of Covid-19 cases in the country is 60,250.

The statistics indicate that of the total 65 deaths registered across the country in the last 20 days (May 24-June 12), 90 per cent (58) occurred in the last 10 days. The cumulative total of Covid-19 deaths is 423 with 15 new deaths reported on June 12 alone.

This comes a few days after President Museveni reinstated a lockdown on schools and ban on inter-district travel, and public gatherings, among others, for 42 days. The lockdown was aimed at curbing the surge in infections and deaths.

For June 12 , 1,735 cases were detected after testing 9,494 Covid-19 samples, with Kampala contributing 64 per cent of the cases (1,117), followed by Wakiso (171), Gulu (111), Mbarara (61), Luwero (46), and Masaka (26).

Dr Moses Muwanga, the director of Entebbe Grade B Hospital, one of the major Covid-19 treatment centres in the country, told Daily Monitor yesterday that the hospital is full to capacity with Covid-19 patients.

"We have around 130 Covid-19 patients at the hospital. The beds are full. We have a mixture of young and old people who are very sick," he said without giving more details.

According to the Ministry of Health, over 788 Covid-19 patients with moderate to severe disease are currently admitted to hospitals. As many as 11,302 Covid-19 patients are being treated from home.

Dr Richard Idro, the president of the Uganda Medical Association, said health workers are stretched and that the country is headed for oxygen crisis as it happened during the Covid-19 surge in India.

"Severely sick Covid-19 patients require a lot of oxygen, these large cylinders of medical oxygen cannot support them. If we allow this disease to go out of hand, we shall run out of medical oxygen in the country and we will lose very many people," he said.

Most regional referral hospitals and Mulago National Referral Hospital have oxygen plants and they are producing medical oxygen. There are also some private facilities which are supporting the Ministry of Health with oxygen, according to the Ministry of Health.

Dr Idro said: "The oxygen supply is there but it is low, when compared to [fast increase in] the number of critically ill Covid-19 patients, and we are afraid that the hospitals and health workers will become overwhelmed."

He added: "Some of the health workers are also falling sick and this means the human resourceS to provide care to patients are declining, and neither will there be sufficient supplies to care for you."

The UMA president advised: "Please stay at home, protect yourself and wash your hands. Eat well, sleep adequately and sunbathe, especially in the mid-morning, to get Vitamin D so as to strengthen your immunity."

According to health experts, a number of cases are in the community, which is fueling transmission.

Source: The Monitor

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