The Eastern Cape Health Department said it was distributing thousands of surgical masks and gloves to frontline health workers across the province.
In a statement, Health MEC Sindiswa Gomba said that they received 1.5 million surgical masks and 200,000 gloves (size 7), which are being stored at the Isuzu warehouse in PE.
“This stock was part of an order placed with the central procurement system on Wednesday and we received it on Friday 25th April,” she said.
She said the Department has since released 300,000 masks to Nelson Mandela Bay Metro, 120,000 to Chris Hani, and 55 000 to Joe Gqabi with other Districts receiving supplies from Tuesday.
“We are prioritising and allocating large quantities to the districts with large caseloads and hospitals caring for patients with confirmed COVID-19 infection,” Gomba said.
“We've also sent 1200 N95 masks and 900 aprons to Frontier Hospital. We expect to receive 100 000 N95 masks on Tuesday and we continue to source gowns for our health workers caring for confirmed cases and those that are testing clients,” she said.
The MEC, who faced calls for her to step down over her handling of the province’s covid19 crisis, said that the availability of Personal Protective Equipment remained a priority for her Department
Last week Health Minister Zweli Mkhize dispatched senior officials to the province to assist in dealing with the pandemic.
He also seconded the Department’s deputy director-general for clinical services, Dr Litha Matiwane, to Nelson Mandela Bay, which has been identified as a hot-spot in the Eastern Cape.
