Moroto, Uganda | URN | A Kenyan female national who was under treatment for coronavirus (COVID-19) disease has escaped from Moroto Regional Referral Hospital.
She was admitted at the hospital on June 2 from Amudat in northern Uganda where she tested positive for COVID-19. She allegedly escaped on Wednesday 3rd night – the same day, another COVID-19 patient attempted to escape twice.
Charles Onyang Omuddu, the Moroto District Health Officer (DHO), says the district task force and health workers have started a hunt for the patient.
The escape of the patient has raised more concerns from the members of the public, who fear that the patient could spread the virus in the community.
Isaac Amuge a resident of Moroto town is worried about the laxity of security at the hospital. Amuge wants the management of the hospital to improve the security to avoid a repeat of such occurrences.
On Wednesday 3rd a male patient made two attempts to escape from the same treatment centre. According to security officers there, the male suspect attempted to escape on Wednesday morning and made another attempt at around 4 pm in the afternoon. The case was admitted to the treatment centre on Monday night.
The case allegedly came out through a broken window and attempted to escape but a police officer on guard noticed and ordered him back into the ward, Moroto district police commander Jude Nasucha said.
“I received a report from the officer who was on guard that the suspect came through that window and tried to escape. By luck, he heard him and ordered him to enter into the ward,” said Nasucha at the treatment centre where he was called after a report of attempted escape.
On Wednesday, the same case came out again at around 3:30 pm and tried to leave the treatment centre – defying orders from the health workers for him to walk back into the ward. It took the intervention of the police, led by the DPC to have the case inside the treatment centre.
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When our reporter visited the facility, he found management discussing how to fix the broken windows in order to improve security. The hospital director, Dr Benedict Watmon declined to comment on the matter when contacted.
Our reporter, also established that the COVID-19 cases had not had a meal since morning. But Dr Watmon said in an interview that the hospital had enough funds and food to feed 120 patients daily including the three COVID-19 cases that were confirmed in Amudat.
