Protest action, looting affected Covid testing in Gauteng and KZN

The National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) has confirmed that the unrest has affected its operations in Gauteng and Kwa-Zulu-Natal. The NHLS handles laboratory services for the public sector, including various HIV, tuberculosis and Covid tests.

“In KwaZulu-Natal, the NHLS has no movement due to lack of transport and fuel shortages, with most healthcare facilities in the urban settings functioning with a skeleton staff,” said NHLS spokesperson Mzimasi Gcukumana. “This poses challenges for the eThekwini Metro who are unable to send specimens to our laboratories for testing.”

According to Gcukumana, in rural settings NHLS laboratories are operating with a staff complement of between 30-70%.

However, he said they are offering a full service except for referral tests that could not be referred because of restricted movement. “The situation is slowly improving with the biggest challenge being the shortages of fuel. With the freeways being blocked, the supply of laboratory consumables such as reagents from Gauteng has been impacted,” he said.

“As part of our contingency plan, we have decentralised Covid testing through leveraging our GeneXpert footprint. In addition, we have encouraged health facilities to use Rapid Antigen testing where clinically indicated according to Covid standing guidelines.“In Gauteng, our testing sites remain ready to process specimens.

However, the challenge the NHLS is faced with is receiving samples from the health facilities. This was due to the inaccessibility of some facilities in Joburg and Ekurhuleni due to the unrest.” Nolundo Rawana, the spokesperson for Afrox, which is the sole supplier of medical oxygen to South Africa’s health facilities, said their operations were affected by unrest.

“Afrox is engaged in emergency planning to ensure deliveries can be safely undertaken and to find alternate routes to customers and hospitals as part of a flexible response to spontaneous civil unrest breaking out,” she said. Rawana confirmed disruptions to some medical oxygen deliveries in Gauteng and Kwa-Zulu-Natal but said Afrox’s contingency measures may include police escorting medical oxygen delivery trucks.

The United Pharmaceutical Distributors (UPD) has confirmed that their warehouse in Mahogany Ridge in KwaZulu-Natal has been looted and the medicine supply chain disrupted.“Our business continuity plan has been implemented to bring in supplies and emergency medicines from other regional sites, particularly clinical medicines for hospitals,” said UPD managing executive Trevor McCoy.