20200409_confidente_COVID_19_testing_capacity_must_be_improved


20200409_confidente_COVID_19_testing_capacity_must_be_improved



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COVID-19 testing capacity must be improved
confidentenamibia.com/pages/article/1846
THE uncertainties brought about by COVID-19 have put our young democracy on a path
to a concerning future but be that as it may, we must be certain that in order to be better
positioned to respond to the full threat of COVID-19, our testing capacity needs drastic
and urgent improvement.
There is no denying that our testing has been not sufficient and Namibia needs
thousands of tests to better understand the true number of infections and halt their
spread.
While the number of confirmed cases in Namibia is rising gradually with a the total
number of confirmed cases now standing at sixteen (16), this week, President Hage
Geingob in a statement, acknowledged testing capability needs improvement adding
that all efforts are being made to procure sufficient testing kits and medical equipment
to strengthen our capacity to respond.
In the interim Geingob urged all Namibians to obey and cooperate with the authorities
highlighting that this deadly virus does not respect social strata, race, ethnicity or
boundaries.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the World Health Organisation director-general, last
week was quoted saying: “We have a simple message for all countries: test, test, test.”
The message is even more relevant for countries with fragile health systems such as
Namibia to stop the coronavirus from spreading to the majority of the country where
controlling the pandemic might prove to be a tougher task. Health experts have
emphasised that testing more people allows for early identification, isolation and
treatment of coronavirus patients.
Perhaps, this is the best time to take cue from our neighbours, South Africa that have
rolled out a mass testing campaign that has reached nearly 60 000 people with plans to
ramp up the exercise.
Such tests would help the country prevent a major catastrophe in Namibia considering
the fact that if the virus was to reach our informal settlements such as Havanna, it would
mean rampant spread that might prove difficult to contain.
We must not be oblivious to the fact that the pandemic continues to escalate
tremendously and the number of deaths is increasing rapidly. Consequently, the world is
witnessing an unprecedented number of new infections and thousands of lives lost in a
very short space of time.
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While efforts by our health ministry are commendable, more needs to be done in view of
testing. We have seen many cases where people that are infected show no symptoms.
We have a general understanding that symptoms could show after a period spanning 14
days. These realities must compel us to take a precautionary stance to start mass testing
as soon as possible. This exercise that we highly recommend can make a difference in
our bid to defeat COVID-19 that seems to be attempting to settle on our shores.
South Africa’s Health Minister Zweli Mkhize last week made a point that is worth
pondering. He said, “Next month the flu season will start, thus making more people sick
with similar symptoms … these will flood our hospitals and clinics and create a fertile
ground for coronavirus to spread,” he said. “We might be currently experiencing calm
before we have a devastating storm.”
This may sound alarmist, but is worrying nonetheless. It is better for us to deploy full
understand of what we dealing with before we get there and the only way to do so is to
deploy a mass testing programme.
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