LIRA – Lira Regional Referral Hospital on Saturday discharged all the remaining 20 Covid-19 patients.
The patients, most of whom were Ugandan truck drivers who came from South Sudan through Elegu border post in Amuru District, were given their discharge certificates by the minister of state for Primary Health Care, Dr Joyce Moriku Kaducu.
The minister said Lira hospital has made records as one of the facilities which have cured all the Covid-19 patients within a very short time without any death.
The minister commended Ugandan medical workers for being experts in managing Covid-19 cases since no coronavirus-related death has been recorded in the country since the outbreak of the infectious disease in March.
“The whole world is now looking at President Yoweri Museveni and the minister of Health Dr Jane Ruth Aceng, as saviours from this killer pandemic since nobody from here (Uganda) has died from Covid-19,” she said.
Dr Steven Oboo, the director of Lira Regional Referral Hospital, said all the 21 Covid-19 patients admitted there were truck drivers in their youthful age except one who was 60 years.
He noted the major challenge the health facility is faced with is lack of resources to effectively fight the Covid-19.
The hospital director asked the government to give Lira treatment centre more funding so that they are well equipped to handle more Covid-19 patients.
This newspaper understands the treatment centre at Lira hospital has the capacity to handle only 22 cases.
Dr Obbo further thanked his medical team for their hard work which has seen all the patients “healed” and discharged from the hospital.
The District Health Officer, Dr Patrick Buchan Ocen, said ever since the outbreak of the coronavirus, no mother has died while giving birth at any Lira health facility.
He attributed this significant improvement in service delivery to commitment of his foot soldiers.
