People living with non-communicable diseases in Meru County have been encouraged to continue visiting health facilities to collect recommended management drugs.
Speaking to the press, the County Executive for Health (CEC), Misheck Mutuma, regretted that many patients, including those terminally sick had absconded attending respective clinics routine medical checkups, citing fear of being infected with Covid-19 virus.
Mutuma assured the public that all public and private health facilities had taken the full responsibility of safeguarding public safety by complying with all Ministry of Health containment guidelines to the letter and thus no cause for alarm.
He noted there were very few people seeking medical services at most Outpatient Departments in the county.
“The situation has raised concern since it is likely to put the lives of some people living on disease management drugs at very high risk,” he noted.
The CEC said the County Government was closely working with the Chiefs and their Assistants to ensure the general public was continuously being reminded on the importance of seeking quality health services instead of confining a sick person at home.
Mutuma discouraged the public against opting for the over-the-counter medicine to treat any form of sickness, adding that seeking medical services from qualified health personnel remained the best alternative in protecting lives.
He said the County Government through the Health docket plan to carry out a public sensitization exercise in all the Sub-counties to empower the public with information on the dangers of self-treatment at home.
“We should all discourage any member of our family or community from assuming the role of a trained health care provider at home, especially when children and the elderly people are involved,” Mutuma said.
On Covid-19 status in the County, Mutuma said the positivity rate had reduced drastically and urged resident to continue observing the Ministry of Health containment measures to win the war against the pandemic.
He further urged residents to avoid being in crowded areas and cautioned that: “Being vaccinated against the Covid-19 virus is not a safety guarantee and should not be a justification for anybody to flout the containment protocols.”
By Makaa Margaret
