Health minister sends team to Eastern Cape to shore up its response to Covid-19

Health minister Zweli Mkhize has deployed a team of medical experts to the Eastern Cape to shore up its response to Covid-19, following a rapid rise in cases in the past week. Its tally stood at 345 cases on Tuesday, almost double the 174 cases reported on April 14.

“The biggest risk of spread that has been identified is the cultural practices occurring at funerals,” Mkhize said in a statement on Tuesday evening. “We engaged with the provincial executive led by premier Oscar Mabuyane and the health MEC Sindiswa Gomba. We immediately took a decision to urgently deploy more medical experts including senior epidemiologists, analysts and field consultants to reinforce the provincial team, led by Kerrigan McCarthy from the National Institute for Communicable Diseases,” he said.

The World Health Organisation was also providing clinicians and experts, and staff from the national health department had been assigned to audit the Eastern Cape health department’s supplies of personal protective equipment.

“This is to ensure the safety and adequate protection of our health workers who are at the forefront. We reiterate that no health worker should be exposed to the risk of infection. They must all be adequately trained on the infection prevention and control (IPC) and be protected at all times,” he said.

The total number of confirmed cases stood at 3,465 as of Tuesday evening. The hardest hit provinces remain Gauteng (1,199), and Western Cape (1,010). followed by KwaZulu-Natal (671). Next in line was Eastern Cape (345), Free State (106), Limpopo (27), North West (24), Mpumalanga (24), Northern Cape (16), and a further 43 cases are unallocated.

kahnt@businesslive.co.za

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