In Calabar, doctors say they aren’t protected against coronavirus
Doctors in Cross River bemoan inadequate protection at work.
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Cross River is the only state in the country yet to report a COVID-19 case.
Governor Ben Ayade has also been chest-thumping on how he has kept his state free from the virus by patrolling the state’s land borders, ensuring that everyone wears a face mask, how masks are distributed for free in Cross River and how government hospitals in the state are well-equipped for the pandemic.
However, some persons on the ground in the state say the picture is quite different and dire.
“He’s not telling the world the truth. Unfortunately, the man has always been big on words and light on action,” says a doctor who works at the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH). This doctor asked that his name be left out of this story.
“Healthcare workers in Calabar do not have Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and I can tell you that COVID-19 test results in Cross River are being manipulated. We don’t even have test facilities here.
"So, samples are driven all the way to the Irua Specialist Hospital in Edo state and by the time they return, the state’s epidemiologist who acts on the governor’s orders, declares them all negative,” the doctor adds.
Another doctor at the UCTH in Calabar who craved anonymity for this story, says, “we have just 33 doctors in the whole of Cross River and the Tinapa COVID-19 isolation center has just 10 bed spaces. We treat patients daily in this hospital with our regular ward coats or scrubs. We don’t have face masks as we work different shifts. It’s that bad.
“Sometimes, we don’t know if the patients we are treating have COVID-19 and we aren’t even protected against the virus. There are no precautions whatsoever. We are at the mercy of God.
“These days, across Calabar, no one wears the face mask anymore and no one observes the safety guidelines,” the doctor shares.
The governor's spokesperson, Christian Ita, was not immediately available for a response to this story.
PPEs for free to schools
On Tuesday, June 9, Governor Ayade announced that the state-owned garment factory has commenced mass production of PPEs for students and healthcare workers at no cost to the beneficiaries.
The governor disclosed that the package for students will include face masks, face shields and PPE overalls.
The medical items will be deployed to schools free of charge as the state government commences trial resumption of public schools, he added.
“Because we care, we want to support our public schools with free distribution of PPE. But our PPE for schools is limited only to the nose masks and face shields.
"But for the health workers in Cross River state, they will be provided at no cost because the government has to bear the cost,” Ayade promised.
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