'Regional isolation centre in Hoima will stem epidemics'

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HOIMA

Hoima Regional Referral Hospital officials are urging the Government to construct a regional isolation centre. They say the move will stem the spread of epidemics in the region.

Dr John Turyagumanawe, the head of the epidemic repose team at the hospital and Bunyoro region, said the current isolation facility can only accommodate five patients.

While giving an update on the mpox outbreak on February 20, 2025, Turyagumanawe said there is a need for a fully-fledged regional isolation centre to ensure proper management of epidemic outbreaks.

He noted that Bunyoro being at the border with DR Congo and the influx of people due to the oil and gas sector, the region is at high risk of epidemic outbreaks such as Ebola, meningitis and mpox.

Dr. John Turyagumanawe, the head of Epidemic repose team at the referral hospital, said the facility has isolation capacity of five patients. (Credit: Peter Abaanabasazi)

“We think that if we had a fully-fledged regional isolation centre, we would be able to respond to outbreaks. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we suffered because we had nowhere to admit patients, we were forced to displace patients with mental illness to manage COVID-19,” he said.  

He also said that the facility is lacking adequate health workers to manage such diseases and called for the recruitment of more medics.

Sex workers driving mpox spread

Turyagumanawe said since mpox was reported in the area, they have registered 31 cumulative cases.

He noted that out of these cases, one person passed away, two were referred to the National Treatment Centre in Entebbe and others were discharged. He noted that the hospital Isolation facility is currently having two people on treatment.

Turyagumanawe noted that eight per cent of patients were from Hoima city, while others were from Kikuube, Hoima, Kagadi and Buliisa districts.

He noted during the examination of the patients; they discovered that the victims were sex workers and their customers. He added that they also discovered other victims contracted the disease from bars and other social gatherings.

Sensitisation needed

Turyagumanawe noted that since it has been discovered that the disease is contracted from happening place, there is a need to carry out sensitisation of the bar owners to revive standard operating procedure (SOPS) to avoid getting infection of Monkeypox.

He also underscored a need to engage the community to resume observing SOPs, such as washing hands, no hugging and sanitizing and avoiding gathering to avoid infection.

He also advised men who go for Commercial Sexual workers to avoid this habit to avoid getting infected with the virus.

Patients escape from hospital

Hoima Resident City commissioner, Badru Mugabi, said the mpox task force is tracing for eight patients who escaped from the hospital adding that all these were workers from different bars in the city.

Hoima city resident commissioner, Badru Mugabi, said that they are looking for eight victims of mpox who escaped from the hospital. (Credit: Peter Abaanabasazi)

Mugabi said most of the cases are of people working in bars adding that the task force working with Hoima city health department have already started moving to bars sensitising bar attendants to take precaution.

He added that they are also planning to have a big meeting with all bar owners and operators to discuss and see how to address the challenge.