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Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The mental health task force in the Health Ministry is scheduled to hold mental and psycho-social support sessions for medical workers involved in treating COVID-19 patients effective Friday 9th June, 2021. The move is in response to the worsening mental and psycho-social distress among medical workers since the outbreak of the second wave of the pandemic.
The extreme exposure to infection, the overwhelming number of cases, dying patients, shortage of personal protection equipment and huge workload are the major causes for mental distress among medical workers according to Dr. Hafisa Lukwata, the Head of the Mental Health Division in the Ministry of Health.
The first counselling session is scheduled to happen at the COVID-19 Treatment Unit in Nambole.
Thereafter, two sessions lasting two hours will be held weekly. The Ministry of Health has written to different managers of different COVID-19 Treatment Units to ensure that medical workers receive mental and psycho-social support as guided by the ministry.
Morris Tukei, a clinical psychologist at International Hospital Kampala notes that it is important for people to do whatever is in their control like following the government regulations to avoid complications.
More than 300 health workers have contracted COVID-19 in the second wave with over 10 deaths reported in just two months. This is in contrast to the first wave where over 1,800 infections and 20 deaths were registered early last year.
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