MASINDI HOSPITAL HEALTH WORKERS ABANDON PATIENTS OVER LACK OF PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT

By Innocent Atuganyira

www.mknewslink.com

In Masindi

Masindi general hospital health workers have reportedly abandoned wards forcing patients to desert the hospital.

The health workers have abandoned the COVID-19 ward also known as Serena ward and the male ward citing lack of personal protective equipment. The patients and caretakers say that they have spent days in the wards without being attended to by health workers.

They revealed this to the district male workers councilor Denis Tumwine during his visit to the hospital following reports of patients being neglected by health workers at the facility.

Fred Edema who was care taking of  his brother in the male ward told the councilor that he arrived at the hospital on Friday but his patient had only been attended to by the health worker once. The care taker added that the situation had forced him to take his brother back home and resort to prayers with the hope that they will heal him.

Rose Atugonza, another caretaker from Pakanyi Sub County also revealed that they arrived at the hospital on Sunday morning but her patient  had not been attended to by any a health worker and they had not got any explanation from the hospital management. Atugonza added that other people had relocated their patients to the private health facilities in the district.

A patient in the female ward who preferred anonymity also said that no health worker had stepped in the ward since yesterday morning which forced the patients including COVID patients to discharge themselves.

In response, councilor Tumwine promised to engage the hospital management with the view of addressing the problem.

The district health officer Patrick Baguma however expressed lack of information about the matter when contacted but promised to follow it up.

However the hospital administrator Simon Baguma dismissed the allegations  that Serina ward is for COVID 19 patients that health workers visit following a time table.

Baguma added that all the patients in the male ward were still new and were being attended to by the health workers.

However a health worker who talked to www.mknewslink.com on grounds of anonymity revealed that they have abandoned the wards for fear of contracting COVID-19 claiming they do not have protective equipment. The health worker claimed that they each received a pair of disposable face masks that were used and they remained with nothing.

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