Ekusileni under 24-hour guard

Bulawayo Bureau

Ekusileni Medical Centre has been placed under 24-hour police guard following the theft of donated borehole equipment on Tuesday.

Thieves cut the fence to access the hospital premises around 4am and stole a compressor and a water pump.

The equipment had been installed in the hospital grounds.

Ekusileni Medical Centre’s acting CEO Dr Abs0lom Dube said to ensure the safety of equipment, the hospital has been put under 24-hour police guard until further notice.

The hospital engaged the Zimbabwe Republic Police, through the Bulawayo Provincial Affairs Minister Judith Ncube.

“They started guarding the premises on Tuesday and will be complementing the security personnel that were already guarding the premises,” said Dr Dube.

The Bulawayo City Council-run Thorngrove Infectious Diseases Hospital, which has received Covid-19 donations, is under 24-hour municipal police guard.

Dr Dube said more work was still to be done, and is not yet ready to open its doors.

It still needs to have some installations to ensure safety of health staff.

The hospital was not originally meant for infectious diseases and has to be modified to suit the purpose.

Said Dr Dube: “We need extractors to extract infected air from rooms, in ICU and where we admit confirmed cases. The other outstanding issues that are there include partitioning, as in which one is the green zone and red zone and the direction of floor from donning to doffing (areas to wear and remove PPEs).

“Finishing off of the sluice rooms aspects, the laundry aspect, the kitchen aspect, the theatre section as someone with Covid-19 may need to be operated on.”

More installations still need to be made, while some wards need touch ups, such as the maternity and theatre wings.

“We need to make sure that we have theatre facility. We also need to work on the delivery room, it needs negative air pressure and installation of beds as well. In terms of having our first patients, these structural issues and key medical elements such as monitors are not yet there. The side lockers and foot stools are not yet available,” he said.

The hospital has an admission capacity of 22, but is working to increasing it to 200.

Meanwhile, the King Lobengula Royal Family Trust donated 96 blankets through the “I Am For Bulawayo Fighting Covid-19” campaign to the hospital.

The donation was presented to Ekusileni Medical Centre yesterday by Mr Peter Zwide-Ka-Langa Khumalo.

In his remarks, Mr Khumalo called for the Bulawayo community and Zimbabweans at large to unite behind the cause and complement Government efforts in combating Covid-19.

“The nurses, doctors, scientists, peace and safety maintenance staff, those in disaster response preparedness roles and awareness building services are doing an amazing contribution and service to the nation.

“Your choice, in your lifetimes to be dutiful and sacrifice for the love of saving other people’s lives, is a true characteristic of being Bulawayan. This is what we are; loving and united for a cause,” he said.