The COVID-19 pandemic is a serious global health threat, and the Wum District Health Service is committed to stopping its spread. The Wum District Health Service has a long history of strengthening public health capacity throughout the Health Areas to contain outbreaks at their source and minimize their impact. This is perhaps the reason why a mass screening campaign to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic was recently organized in the 19 health facilities of the 17 health areas. The campaign had as aim to curb the spread of the virus as COVID-19 cases now rise to 16, including 2 deaths, 8 recoveries and 6 active cases.
The Wum District Health Services is located in Menchum Division of the North-West Region of Cameroon. It is bounded in the North by the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in the South by the Bafut Health District, in the East by the Fundong Health District and the Nkambe Health District and in the West by the Benakuma Health District.
It is worth mentioning here that the Wum District Health Service covers 17 Health areas and works closely with the all the Health Centers, be they public, private or confessional, and other partners, to assist the population in these health areas, to prepare for and respond to COVID-19. The Wum District Health Service routinely provides technical assistance to Churches, Mosques and other houses of worship, to improve our collective response to infectious disease threats like COVID-19. There are 17 public health facilities and 2 confessional health facilities.
Screening exercise at the Bafmen Market square
The mass testing campaign that began within this Health area, aims at flattening the curve of the pandemic in the Wum Health District. With a population of 135.545 inhabitants, the Wum Health District has confirmed 16 virus cases
so far, including 2 deaths, 8 recoveries and 6 active cases. We were pleasantly surprised by the response of the population because we had planned to screen 250 people per day but we noticed that we had already taken more samples than previewed, which shows that the population responded massively to the screening exercise. Dixit Dr. Flores Duke ELOMMEBAKO NTUNGWA, District Medical Officer, Wum Health District.
Mobile teams are often seen on Sunday morning in major Churches, on Friday Afternoon in the central Mosque, public places, at the Wum Main Market and at some palaces. The teams are divided into four groups as sensitization, reception, testing, and lab technicians.
Mobile screening is a strategy where we create teams of health personnel who to sensitize the population, offer counseling, and collect samples on the spot. The results are highly confidential and cannot be given in public. We invite the positive cases to the hospital where they are taken care of so as to limit the spread in the communities.” Dixit Dr. ELOMMEBAKO.
For the campaign to be successful, the District Medical Officer, grouped the 17 Health Areas in six zones, covered by a Rapid Response Team with 8 well trained laboratory technicians. The most important zone is zone 6 which is the trans-border zone stationed at Esu. The raison dêtre of such a Health campaign according to Dr. ELOMMEBAKO is to help us to easily identify, track, and treat patients in order to break the chain of transmission. Those tested will receive their results in three days and positive cases will be admitted to the various COVID-19 management and treatment centers set up across the Health District.
Asked why the choices of Churches and other places of worship and other public places, Dr. ELOMMEBAKO told OJ SLIM MEDIA that the mobile screening sites were set up with the support of administrative authorities and the locations were selected on the basis of two criteria; epidemiological situation and population density. The latter is the reason why markets, bus and motorbike stations, Churches, and palaces have been chosen as the testing sites.
Despite the readiness of the Wum Health District to combat the deadly COVID-19, there are some few huddles on its path. There is only one isolation/quarantine unit approved. The DMO decried the acute shortage in staff as the District Health Services has only 8 trained laboratory technicians for a total of 17 Health Areas. The health services has more of Community Health workers than government workers. He called on the government to transfer more nurses to Wum Health District. In the face of the current fight against COVID-19, there is need for more Rapid test kits for screening. The absence of a response car makes things more difficult for these health professionals to do their work.
Although difficulties abound, it should be noted that hopes loom in the horizon as the cure rate stands at 50% while the fatality rate is as low as 0.1%. Kudos to the brave nurses and their Doctors for the job done to save mankind.
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