Exhausted Swaziland coronavirus nurses picket for better conditions and equipment

 Nurses at a coronavirus quarantine centre in Swaziland (eSwatini) took to the streets to protest the lack of equipment and poor working conditions.

More than 20 nurses at the Mavuso Exhibition and Trade Centre in Manzini which has been turned into a coronavirus (COVID-19) centre picketed and blocked traffic on Monday (18 January 2021). They said they were exhausted with having to treat up to 35 patients at once. Some have reportedly collapsed with tiredness and others are off work sick.

The Swaziland Democratic Nurses Union (SWADNU) Manzini Regional Chairperson Nhlanhla Mhlanga said the buildings were unsuitable for coronavirus patients and had no windows or other ventilation.

He added ‘Most of our patients are diabetic but there are not enough glucometers here. These things cost less than E400 (US$27) each.’ There is also a shortage of masks and protective equipment for nurses.

In an editorial comment, the Times of eSwatini said, ‘It is evident to us all that our understaffed health workers are overwhelmed and overexposed due to an abnormally high number of COVID-19 infected patients being attended to daily – at times without a consistent supply of personal protective equipment (PPE). As a result, several nurses engaged in a go-slow in some health centres around the country, which affected hundreds of innocent patients.

‘They cannot be faulted for feeling unappreciated when their concerns come secondary to the car allowances and perks paid out to politicians right in the middle of a health crisis. This ill-timed decision has opened floodgates of demands from numerous sectors that feel equally important. People are dying but some are more concerned about their allowances. It’s sickening.’

The Swazi Minister of Health Lizzie Nkosi has already appealed to the World Health Organisation to send extra healthcare workers to Swaziland. In a letter she said, ‘The high number of new cases has resulted in health systems that are now overstretched, including a severe shortage of oxygen supply to the people who need it. The second wave is also resulting in more client admissions as a majority of the clients are presenting with symptoms, which rapidly progress to severe and critical illness. Furthermore, the capacity to manage critically ill patients is not adequate in the face of the rapidly rising numbers of patients presenting with severe illness.’

On Monday the Ministry of Health announced a further eight deaths from coronavirus bringing the total to 384. A total 13,187 people have tested positive since the crisis began.

 

See also

Swaziland plea to WHO for urgent help as coronavirus deaths out of control

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2021/01/swaziland-plea-to-who-for-urgent-help.html

 Big rises in coronavirus cases predicted in Swaziland by month’s end  

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2021/01/big-rises-in-coronavirus-cases.html

 

Swaziland bans all gatherings as Govt. struggles to stem rise in coronavirus deaths https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2021/01/swaziland-bans-all-gatherings-as-govt.html

 

As coronavirus deaths rise, Swaziland Royal Family remain indifferent, new review finds  

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2021/01/as-coronavirus-deaths-rise-swaziland.html

 

Swaziland coronavirus deaths climb but vaccines might be three months away https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2021/01/swaziland-coronavirus-deaths-climb-but.html

Swaziland short of coronavirus protective equipment for health workers as prices soar

Swaziland (eSwatini) is short of personal protective equipment (PPE) for front-line health workers during the coronavirus crisis because suppliers have doubled their prices, the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) said. 

Once a tender for equipment had been agreed suppliers asked for prices to be increased and often more than doubled.

NDMA Procurement Officer Phesheya Dlamini told the eSwatini Observer, ‘Within a week of award, the prices had increased a hundredfold [doubled] to an extent that three companies came back to us requesting a price increase of over 100 per cent of the quoted price.

‘For instance, the supplier of gowns had initially said he would supply us the gowns at E197 each.  He, however, came back and requested to at least supply at a revised price of not less than E400. The only supplier that did not have a problem was the one who had quoted E1,300. Similarly the company that was to supply gumboots ended up failing to do so because of the price hike.’

The Director of Health Services Dr Vusi Magagula said suppliers were struggling to deliver goods on time and some coronavirus (COVID-19) supplies were not available as countries rushed for them due to the pressing demand.

Doctors, nurses and other health workers have had to treat coronavirus patients without correct PPE during the continuing pandemic. On 22 May 2020, Minister of Health Lizzie Nkosi said 33 health workers had contracted the virus in Swaziland.

She added, ‘This suggests that in this fight health workers are not spared from this pandemic as they could [be] gripped by anxiety and fears.’

Swazi Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini called frontline health workers ‘our frontline soldiers’. He said, ‘In this war against the pandemic that has been plaguing the globe healthcare workers are in the firing end. They are the ones who are bravely protecting us against [the] deadly invisible enemy.’

Separately, voluntary workers in the community were told they should strip off their clothes and wash them outside their homes after each day’s work to avoid taking coronavirus into their homes. 

Participants at a workshop in the National Tuberculosis Control Programme (NTCP) were told this was because PPE was not available.

See also

Swaziland nurses’ union calls for closure of major hospital in fight against coronavirus

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2020/04/swaziland-nurses-union-calls-for.html

Coronavirus: Swaziland hospitals in crisis, PM forms emergency task groups

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2020/03/coronavirus-swaziland-hospitals-in.html

Swaziland nurses refuse to treat patients until they get protective equipment

Nurses in Swaziland (eSwatini) will refuse to treat patients until the government supplies them with protective clothing. They fear they might catch the coronavirus. 

Members of the Swaziland Democratic Nurses Union marched on the Swazi Ministry of Health to deliver a petition.

They say there is no suitable equipment available and want gloves, masks, soap, sanitizers and gowns. They added some hospitals did not even have running water.

The march on Tuesday (17 March 2020) came on the same day the kingdom’s absolute monarch King Mswati III declared a state of emergency. Schools, colleges and universities will close indefinitely and gatherings of 50 people or more are banned. There are also travel restrictions.

Separately, nurses at the Raleigh Fitkin Memorial Hospital (RFM) reportedly refused to treat patients on Monday.

The Swaziland News, an online newspaper, reported they were demanding protective clothing. It said some patients had to return home without being treated.

According to a report in 2019 from the World Health Organisation there were not enough doctors, nurses and support staff in Swaziland. It stated the kingdom had an inadequate health workforce in both numbers and skills. 

See also

Swaziland King declares state of emergency over coronavirus. Schools closed, foreign travel suspended

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2020/03/swaziland-king-declares-state-of.html

Swaziland teachers and Govt argue over whether schools should close during coronavirus outbreak

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2020/03/swaziland-teachers-and-govt-argue-over.html

 

Swaziland nurses plan protest march over lack of coronavirus equipment

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2020/03/swaziland-nurses-plan-protest-march.html
 

Calls for ban on public gatherings and border closure as Swaziland hit by coronavirus

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2020/03/calls-for-ban-on-public-gatherings-and.html

Swaziland nurses plan protest march over lack of coronavirus equipment

Nurses in Swaziland (eSwatini) plan to march on the Ministry of Health to protest at the lack of protective clothing and other equipment to tackle the coronavirus crisis.

Swaziland Democratic Nurses Union President Bheki Mamba said the kingdom had minimal items in health facilities. He said even the little protective clothing available was old and was left over from the novel influenza A (H1N1) virus outbreak in 2009.

Mamba accused the Swazi Government of not telling the truth about the level of supplies available. 

Nurses intend to march on Tuesday (17 March 2020). 

Swaziland has only one confirmed case of coronavirus as of 16 March 2020. Two centres are being prepared to be used to quarantine patients as the virus spreads. The known case is at Lubombo Referral Hospital.

Mamba said protective clothing was not available for all staff at the hospital.

Even before coronavirus struck Swaziland’s public health service was in meltdown. The government which is not elected but handpicked by absolute monarch King Mswati III had run the economy into the ground. Medicine and equipment was in short supply because bills to suppliers had been left unpaid.

Following a visit to Swaziland in early 2019 the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported there were not enough doctors, nurses and support staff. Its report stated, ‘The country has inadequate health workforce in both numbers and skills. The distribution of health workforce is also skewed in favour of urban areas with some rural health facilities having staffing gaps. Other health workforce challenges include; retention of skilled staff due to frequent rotation of workers especially nurses; and government absorption of donor funded positions.’

WHO added, ‘The distribution of health facilities and access to essential health services create inequities between rural and urban populations.’

Prior to the WHO visit there were reports of deaths caused by lack of medicines. At least three patients using the Nhlangano Health Centre were said to have died because they could not get drugs to control their blood pressure.

There have been reports across Swaziland that hospitals cannot afford to feed patients and vital medicines have run out. 

In December 2018 the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the Mbabane Government Hospital was reported to be close to shut-down because equipment was not being maintained. People were dying because of this, it was reported.

In September 2018 it was reported at least six children in Swaziland had died from diarrhoea and many more were sick because the government was broke and could not pay for vaccines. It would cost US$6 for the vaccine to immunise a child.

In June 2018 it was revealed there were only 12 working public ambulances in the whole of Swaziland because the government failed to maintain them. It had bought no new ambulances since 2013.

See also

Swaziland health crisis getting worse as budgets cut. Rural areas most affected

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2019/02/swaziland-health-crisis-getting-worse.html

More deaths in Swaziland as government fails to pay medicine suppliers

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2019/05/more-deaths-in-swaziland-as-government.html

 

Report: patients die as Swaziland government hospital runs out of cash

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2019/01/report-patients-die-as-swaziland.html
 

Medicine shortage: five die

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2017/06/medicine-shortage-five-die.html

Public servants across Swaziland set to strike over pay

Public servants across Swaziland / eSwatini are set to strike for three days starting Monday (23 September 2019) in a long-running campaign over pay.

Workers want a 7.8 percent cost-of-living adjustments but the government says it is broke and cannot pay anything.

The standoff has seen a number of marches on government in recent days in which petitions were delivered to ministries. Petitions were also delivered to regional administration offices and regional education offices across the kingdom which is ruled by King Mswati III as an absolute monarch.

The unions involved under the umbrella of the Public Sector Associations (PSA) include the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT), Swaziland National Association of Civil Servants (SNACS), Swaziland Nurses Association (SNA), and Swaziland National Association of Government Accounting Personnel (SNAGAP).  

The nurses cannot take part in the strike as they are considered an essential service under Swazi law.

Public servants have not been awarded a Cost of Living Adjustment for the past three years. Unions say prices have risen by 19.9 percent in that time.

See also

Swaziland Industrial Court paves way for public servants to strike legally

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2019/08/swaziland-industrial-court-paves-way.html

Swaziland public servants prepare for pay strike amid fears of renewed police violence against them

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2019/01/swaziland-public-servants-prepare-for.html

Number of child deaths from diarrhoea in Swaziland rises

The number of children known to have died in the current outbreak of diarrhoea in Swaziland / eSwatini has risen to 11, the charity WaterAid reported.

This was revealed at a workshop on hygiene held at Pigg’s Peak.

WaterAid Eswatini Research Manager Ncamiso Mhlanga said the main contribution to these deaths were poor sanitation methods, mainly at home or day care centres where these children stay.

Swazi Director of Health Services Vusi Magagula reported in early August 2019 that six children had died over a period of four days and about another 1,000 others had been treated for the infection caused by the rota virus. 

Deaths from this preventable disease occur in the kingdom every year. But the government, ruled by King Mswati III as the last absolute monarch in sub-Saharan Africa, is broke and continually fails to tackle to problem.

Diarrhoea is a bowel infection often caused by contaminated water or food. According to the website of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, a 25-pack of one dose vials of rotavirus vaccine to immunise against diarrhoea costs US70.49 (E1,050) at commercial rates. Typically a child needs two doses to be immunised.

Swaziland is broke and public services are grinding to a halt. All kinds of medicines are in short supply in public hospitals and clinics because the government has failed to pay suppliers. Nursing posts and other vacancies remain unfilled as part of a government policy to cut its wages bill. At least 400 qualified nurses are unemployed, Dr Magagula recently told a meeting of pensioners in Mbabane.

 

See also

Six children die in Swaziland in diarrhoea outbreak. Vaccines short since government has not paid suppliers

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/six-children-die-in-swaziland-in.html

 

Swaziland nurses picket, drugs run out, lives put at risk as government fails to pay suppliers

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/08/swaziland-nurses-picket-drugs-run-out.html

Six children die as diarrhoea once again strikes Swaziland

Six children died from diarrhoea in four days in Swaziland / eSwatini and about another 1,000 others have been treated for the infection caused by the rota virus, a senior official said on Monday. 

Deaths from this preventable disease occur in the kingdom every year. But the government, ruled by King Mswati III as the last absolute monarch in sub-Saharan Africa, is broke and continually fails to tackle to problem.

The latest round of deaths was announced by Director of Health Services Vusi Magagula on Monday (5 August 2019), the APA news agency reported.

‘These fatal cases are a result of delayed treatment,’ he said. The deaths occurred at two health centres in the south of the kingdom.

Out of the 1,000 children aged five years and below, most were admitted to hospital.

In Swaziland diarrhoea is rated among the top three causes of mortality especially amongst children under five years of age. In the worst case in recent years in 2014 at least 40 children died during an outbreak. Hundreds were hospitalised and more than 3,000 cases were recorded. 

In 2014 the World Bank estimated 17.6 percent of children aged under five suffered from diarrhoea in a two week period it surveyed.

Diarrhoea is a preventable disease. It is a bowel infection often caused by contaminated water or food. According to the website of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, a 25-pack of one dose vials of rotavirus vaccine to immunise against diarrhoea costs US70.49 (E1,050) at commercial rates. Typically a child needs two doses to be immunised.

APA reported the Swaziland Ministry of Health was downplaying the latest cases claiming it did not amount to an ‘outbreak’.

Swaziland is broke and public services are grinding to a halt. All kinds of medicines are in short supply in public hospitals and clinics because the government has failed to pay suppliers. Nursing posts and other vacancies remain unfilled as part of a government policy to cut its wages bill. At least 400 qualified nurses are unemployed, Dr Vusi Magagula recently told a meeting of pensioners in Mbabane.

 

Seven in ten of Swaziland’s estimated 1.3 million population live in abject poverty with incomes less than the equivalent of US$2 per day. The King has 13 palaces. He also owns fleets of top-of-the range Mercedes and BMW cars. His family regularly travel the world on shopping trips spending millions of dollars each time.

The King wore a watch worth US$1.6 million and a suit beaded with diamonds weighing 6 kg, at his 50^th birthday party. Days earlier he took delivery of his second private jet, a A340 Airbus, that after VIP upgrades reportedly cost US$30 million. He received E15 million (US$1.2 million) in cheques, a gold dining room suite and a gold lounge suite among his birthday gifts.

See also

Six children die in Swaziland in diarrhoea outbreak. Vaccines short since government has not paid suppliers

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/six-children-die-in-swaziland-in.html

Swaziland nurses picket, drugs run out, lives put at risk as government fails to pay suppliers

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/08/swaziland-nurses-picket-drugs-run-out.html
 

Medicine shortage: five die

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2017/06/medicine-shortage-five-die.html

Swazi King parties while children die

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2014/08/swazi-king-parties-while-children-die.html