Since April 28, the Doctors Without Borders (MSF) NGO has opened the Epidemic Treatment Center (CTEpi). As of May 13, 2020, two weeks after its opening, the center had received 116 Covid-19 patients, about fifty of whom were cured of the disease.
This Wednesday 13th, MSF officials organized a guided tour of the facilities, during which they explained how the center works.
Dr Kassi NANAN-N’ZETH, MSF-Guinea medical coordinator, first recalled that its structure has been present in Guinea since 1984 and supports the Ministry of Health in improving the health of the population. “ So in principle we are an emergency medical humanitarian organization, but we have other activities that are routine activities “Said Dr. Kassi before adding that” Faced with the COVID situation, we first started by participating in the different coordination bodies for the definition of needs, the analysis of the situation and the identification of the means and resources for the response. “
During the Ebola virus disease that raged in Guinea from December 2013 to 2015, MSF helped the country to fight the epidemic. The NGO had equipped the Nongo CTE to take care of the sick. At the end of the epidemic, the center, which requires rehabilitation each time, was returned to the Ministry of Health. “With the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic, there were specific peculiarities in the management of this disease. It was necessary to make an inventory to see how many times it still met the criteria for the admission of patients to guarantee the comfort, but also the safety of the staff who work here “Said Dr. Kassi, saying that work has been done to readjust the center for good care of Covid-19 patients.
Currently, the CTEpi, according to MSF, has a capacity of 75 patients. Unlike the Donka center, Nongo only receives confirmed cases for their care. ” We receive patients who have already been screened and who are referred to us by the Donka center. So here there are no suspicious cases, there are only confirmed cases. […] At the moment we welcome light patients, with very few symptoms or moderate cases, therefore those who have some symptoms. We are in the process of seeing so that we quickly evolve towards the possibility of taking care of moderate cases and severe cases. “
According to Dr Nanamoudou Traoré, CTEpi de Nongo medical manager, this center does not have ventilators and does not need them to date, since it does not receive serious cases: ” For the moment, there are no respirators here, since the cases that come are simple, light cases which have not serious symptoms, so in reality they are manageable without oxygen. “
” From April 28 to date, 116 patients have been seen in Nongo and more than 50 are cured. The rest of the patients are in hospital “, He concluded.
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