Rural folks need help on COVID-19

COVID-19 is wreaking havoc with daily deaths maintaining a three-figure range. On Tuesday, Zimbabwe recorded 107 deaths, the highest since the outbreak of the virus in 2019. Despite the threat posed by coronavirus, there are disturbing scenarios of people who seem not perturbed by the scourge yet lives continue to be lost. Many stories have been written about COVID-19, however, many people still do not observe symptoms and signs of the disease. We have had numerous deaths which were attributed to ignorance. It is imperative to take COVID-19 seriously if we are to avert further disaster. COVID-19 is wreaking havoc everywhere, with rural areas also affected. Many African countries are being hit hard with South Africa, Tunisia, Mozambique being the most affected — with both morbidity and mortality moving at an unprecedented speed.

People are different with some being non-conformist and others traditionalistic who despise modernism. Our rural people need assistance if the spread of COVID-19 is to be averted as their traditionalistic attitude and behaviour are significantly fuelling both morbidity and mortality.

It was some few days ago when I received news that one of the village heads in my rural area had died after battling shortness of breadth at home for just five days.

What touched me was the level of ignorance of the people in the surrounding villages who thronged the funeral and attributed the sad death to witchcraft, yet it was COVID-19.

The community elders ordered a burial on the next day. I doubt if a post-humous COVID-19 test was done. It is an indisputable fact that many people got infected at that funeral and casualties will emerge in few days.

The loathsome virus will surely hit us with many casualties. Our country has just imported two million more vaccine doses from China, making it one of the fastest movers in Africa, in terms of inoculation drive.

Ignorance is socially constructed and it pervades social life in many ways. We have every reason to be disconcerted during this third wave. Almost every family has lost a member to COVID-19 and it seems all age groups are equally affected. The third wave is proving to be the deadliest with the month of July alone contributing to at least one third of all deaths in Zimbabwe.

This is frightening considering that no one knows exactly when the third wave is going to end. It is a sad development for Africa considering how underdeveloped health infrastructure is.

Measures should surely be put in place to urgently flatten the curve. It is sad as all age groups are infected and affected with serious impact on the political, economic and social aspects of life.

The sad observation is that the virus seems to slip under our noses and many of the infections occur under our watch as our behaviour determines the extent of the infections.

What is needed is discipline and compliance with the stipulated public health measures if we are to be safe.

Hospitals are already overwhelmed with patients requiring oxygen because of hypoxia, a condition where oxygen saturation goes below 80%. It is sad to note that the virus is moving like whirlwind.

The unfortunate part is that despite all these infections, the populace is not as serious as it was during the second wave, raising fears that we may be headed for a medical catastrophe.

The diabetics are in big trouble and it is my advice that these patients should not be wholly attended to at their homes. I have noted with concern that diabetics complicate quite easily and allowing their saturation to slide below 80% is a recipe for disaster.

This third wave does not allow you to keep a diabetic patient in self-isolation because that patient needs proper medical checks and follow-ups. It is time to revise our management protocols from mere self-isolation to assisted isolation.

We have noted, as medical practitioners and foot soldiers, why many people are succumbing to COVID-19 in this third wave. Yes, we are a poor country but we have managed to curb the spread of the virus to a greater extent despite the limited resources in the country.

The medical personnel has shown tenacious determination to save lives. If we are to eradicate the virus, we need to accept some of the following:

Funerals are super spreaders

Funerals are showing a positive correlation with both morbidity and mortality. The correlation coefficient is surely greater than 0,5. What I observed at a recent rural funeral was that very few people actually observed the stipulated public health guidelines, which is a recipe for a medical catastrophe. We risk losing many of our rural folks due to ignorance. How can we flatten the epidemiological curve if our people are not wearing masks, and not observing social distancing among other measures.

Diaspora effect

It is unfortunate that many patients with relatives in the diaspora are reaching late stages of COVID-19 because they are advised to use all sorts of drugs at home. This is proving to be catastrophic. Some of the patients actually argue with the medical practitioners who are the COVID-19 fighters merely because a relative in the United Kingdom has prescribed some medication over the phone. I think Zimbabwe has managed COVID-19 better than United States of America, Italy, Germany or the United Kingdom. We are a poor country yes, however, measures put in place since 2020 have managed to contain the virus. The resilient medical staff in the country has done all in its power to save lives.

Continuous self-treatment should not be allowed

The assumption that COVID-19 is treated the same way as last time is misleading. The Delta variant is merciless and it seems to resist so many common treatments, hence putting the lives of many in danger. Patients with comorbidities should not self-treat as they tend to deteriorate suddenly. Diabetes, obesity, heart failure, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and hypertension are all a thorn in the flesh.

Many patients we see in bad states require oxygen because of respiratory distress syndrome.

It is not a good idea that patients selftreat without the advice of medical personnel who should encourage them to have regular oxygen saturation checks with a pulse oximeter. Hypoxia is tearing many patients apart.