By NATION REPORTER
THE increased Covid-19 cases figures being reported are not inflated, the Ministry of Health has said.
Permanent Secretary for Technical Services, Dr Kennedy Malama announced that 2, 146 new cases out of 14, 033 tests conducted and eight new deaths were recorded in the last 24 hours.
Dr Malama appealed to Zambians not to be misguided by doomsayers peddling lies as the situation on the ground was as the ministry was updating the nation.
He also expressed concern that some people were staying home with severe diseases and reporting late to health facilities, in some cases with blood oxygen level (saturation) below 50 percent when the normal should be 95 percent to 100 percent.
“This should be avoided!,” he said.
Dr Malama said Covid-19 isolation facilities, including those in high density areas were receiving patients at an unprecedented rate, with 144 new admissions made in the last 24 hours alone.
He said for Lusaka, first level hospitals in Matero, Chipata, Kanyama, and Chilenje were managing Covid 19 patients as in-patients.
“Similarly, we continue to see Covid-19 patients admitted in our rural and remote district hospitals. This in itself tells us that Covid-19 has touched every corner of our country,” Dr Malama said.
He said in as much as “ukufutikila” was encouraged, but not when one has severe symptoms of disease such as difficulty in breathing, high temperature among others.
Dr Malama called for more adherence to the prescribed public health guidelines and urged law enforcement wings and leaders at various levels to take pole position that lives were saved.
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