COVID-19 Monitoring and Advocacy Report: 24 March 2020

By ZADHR Info on March 24, 2020 in COVID-19, COVID-19 Monitoring Reports, Press Statements

The Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR) is closely following the response by the Zimbabwe government to the COVID 19 pandemic. ZADHR aims to provide constructive criticism and suggest urgent action points to the Government of Zimbabwe. We hope to ensure an appropriate response that minimizes mortality and morbidity is enacted by the Zimbabwean government

As we mourn the demise of second diagnosed patient from the Corona Virus ZADHR welcomes the gazetting of Statutory Instruments 76 and 77 of 2020 on Civil Protection (Declaration of State Disaster: Rural and Urban Areas of Zimbabwe) (COVID-19) Notice, 2020 and Public Health (COVID-19- Prevention, Containment and Treatment) Regulations, 2020 respectively to

guide the country’s preparedness and response strategy on the 23rd of March 2020. A raft of measures were announced and these include the closing of ports of entry, limiting of numbers that can gather, the ban on gatherings at venues, enforcement of quarantine and travel restrictions. We however, note that there is need for improvement in the following areas;

A. Ports of Entry Screening and Preparedness

ZADHR is deeply concerned by the screening process at the ports of entry into Zimbabwe. ZADHR provides the Harare International Airport as a case study. We are informed that not all passengers are subjected to physical verification of travel history. This provides a loophole for the unchecked entry of high-risk visitors without due screening. We also established that no follow up on whether visitors from high risk areas are in self-quarantine or not. No follow up is being done for all high-risk travellers once they are in the country. ZADHR calls upon the government to urgently revise the screening process to ensure a physical verification of travel history to ALL passengers. ZADHR also calls for the establishment of a state managed facility that quarantines all travellers from high risk countries for fourteen days.

B. Social Distancing

ZADHR notes with outright concern that the call by the government to citizens to implement social distancing is not being followed and will be of little to no effectiveness. ZADHR urges the government to enforce its measures as outlined in the 23rd of March restrictions by the President that restricts travel, limits the operation of non-essential businesses and minimize public and private transportation for the next fourteen days. The state must consider the possibility of a total lockdown as a matter of urgency

C. Health Facilities Preparedness

ZADHR received reports that Wilkins hospital does not have any respiratory support equipment. We received reports of ventilators being borrowed from a private facility hospital in Harare in times of need. This shows the state of unpreparedness of our COVID-19 treatment designated facility. We call upon the Cabinet to urgently provide funds to procure a minimum of one hundred respiratory support machines to be used throughout the country for severe cases of COVID-19. ZADHR is also deeply concerned by verified reports of suspected COVID-19 cases who are failing to receive health care services at Wilkins due to lack of services such as ambulance services and unclear management protocols at private and public health institutions that are referring cases to Wilkins hospital. We make reference to a case of a seriously Ill patient with suspected severe pneumonia who could not get assistance for at least 7 hours today (24 March 2020) as Wilkins Hospital said they had no available ambulance services and Parirenyatwa Hospital could not take the patient in as the patient was a suspected COVID-19 case.

D. Health Workforce Support

ZADHR calls upon the government to provide a supportive environment for frontline health workers who are responsible in the response to COVID-19. We received widespread reports of shortages of personal protective equipment (PPEs) in most government and private facilities. We also call upon the government to disclose the current testing capabilities of our health sector.

E. Mental Health Support

Government must urgently provide a mental health support program targeting ordinary citizens, health workers and COVID-19 patients or those under investigation. Government must also urgently provide economic support measures to all Zimbabweans in view of how their income generating activities are going to be affected by the restricted movements. Tax breaks for companies to ensure they continue to pay salaries for workers, scrapping of user fees for ECOCASH transactions to encourage use of plastic money and hence possibility of COVID-19 transmission and provision of alternative online shopping facilities coordinated by the national postal carrier are all examples of what the central government can do to limit movement whilst supporting citizens.