Covid-19 disrupts Rumphi, Nkhata Bay hospitals

Authorities have closed some sections of Rumphi and Nkhata Bay district hospitals after some Covid-19 patients received assistance there.

Rumphi District Hospital has closed its paying wing and placed on quarantine the staff exposed to a Covid-19 patient.

Some staff members also locked the administration block on Wednesday to stop authorities from accessing the offices.

The move is meant to force management to improve the welfare of support staff who are not getting risk allowances for their frontline work.

In an interview, Rumphi District Hospital spokesperson Bwanalori Mwamlima said one Covid-19 patient went through the paying  section.

However, Mwamlima could not give reasons why the administration block was sealed.

“Officials are working from home,” he said.

In Nkhata Bay, the hospital closed the outpatient department (OPD) after noting that a Covid-19 case went through the section.

In a separate interview, Nkhata Bay District Hospital spokesperson Christopher Singini said workers at the hospital were scared to work in the rooms where the patient had been assisted.

He said management temporarily closed the section on Tuesday and Wednesday to disinfect them.

“The patient was taken to isolation room and the OPD is operating,” he said.