By Kobusiinge Monica
Kampala: The Ministry of Health has admitted lapses in COVID-19 test results which it says will be sorted by the strategies it has developed in a bid to curb the rising cases and result inconsistencies released by both the accredited government and private laboratories.
However, the Ministry has urged Ugandans who have or will test positive for COVID-19 to take precautionary measures to curb the spread of the deadly pandemic disease that has so far driven 41 Ugandans to death.
The development comes as result of most Ugandans complaining about results released by the labs where some claim that they have received two different result slips, one indicating positive and the other negative, yet others claim to have taken two different samples on the same day but indicating different results.
In addition to the above, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni in his address to the nation on COVID-19 on 11th, June 2020, he cautioned Makerere University laboratory for faking COVID-19 test results something that left Ugandans wondering of what deal could be for these scientists to fake the tests.
“Some of the 679 confirmed cases were classified as positive (for COVID-19) by a laboratory in Makerere yet they were not and this is because these scientists were carelessly sleeping on their duties,” Museveni said.
It should be noted that its not only President Museveni who cautioned about COVID-19 results, but also a number of people have come out to refute the same results with the most notable being the family of the 80-year-old woman from Kampala, who passed away on July 25, and that of the family of Dr David Katuntu from Kamuli District
Therefore, basing on the above contradicts and inconsistencies in COVID-19 test results, it is a clear indication that some people have been served false positive COVID-19 results and wrongly put on treatment while others unnecessarily quarantined.
It also means those who are truly positive have been given false negative results and left to interact freely with the community and continue transmitting the virus.
Meanwhile the country has registered 128 new COVID-19 infections on Sunday, September 6 according to the Ministry of Health.
The new cases which rise the total confirmed infections to 3,667 are from tests done on September 5, 2020.
”Part of the new cases are 120 contacts and alerts from Kampala 95, Wakiso 13, Luweero 3, Nwoya 2, Amuru 1, Jinja 1, Kanungu 1, Manafwa 1, Maracha 1, Soroti 1 and Zombo 1,” a statement from Ministry of Health reads.
The Ministry also added that 7 health workers tested positive for coronavirus including 2 from Kampala, 2 from Lira, 2 from Wakiso and 1 from Mityana.
In addition, one Ugandan truck driver tested positive for coronavirus via Elegu border and one Rwandese truck driver tested positive for COVID-19 at Mirama Hills and his entry into the country was not permitted.”
The Ministry has noted that two more people from Kampala and Jinja have died of COVID-19 which brings the total deaths to 41 while the recoveries stand at 1,608.
