Kirinyaga launches campaign to curb spread of Covid-19

The Kirinyaga county government has stepped up its war against the Covid-19 pandemic with the launch of an accelerated prevention campaign against the disease.

The programme is intended to control the spread of infections at the community level.

The campaigns are spearheaded by the county’s department of Health and is being implemented in collaboration with stakeholders from other government departments as well as religious and community leaders.

According to Governor Anne Waiguru, the accelerated programme will see health workers and community health volunteers traverse Kirinyaga villages educating the public on the need to strictly adhere to all Covid-19 prevention measures and also enforcing the prevention protocols.

“We are mobilising our teams to go around towns, villages, markets, bus stations and schools educating the masses on the importance of adhering to Covid-19 prevention and control protocols,” said the governor.

She noted that Covid-19 transmissions are already spreading across the villages and the most disturbing issue is that many people do not have any signs of illness and would thus infect many others unknowingly.

Kirinyaga cases

The county has so far registered 400 positive cases out of 2,248 samples. Seven people have succumbed to the disease.

“It is now imperative that we observe the recommended preventive measures at all times and make it a personal responsibility to ensure that we do not contract the disease out of negligence,” said Ms Waiguru.

She reminded residents to always wear their masks properly, wash their hands and avoid crowded places.

The county teams will also be enforcing the Covid-19 prevention guidelines in bus stations, markets, schools and other public places such as eateries and offices.

Traders are supposed to ensure that there are hand washing or sanitisation facilities within their premises.

The governor observed that just as traders should not serve customers who do not have masks on, customers should also not allow traders without masks to serve them.

Governor Waiguru noted that her administration has continued to increase the county’s capacity to manage Covid-19 cases and recently procured five ventilators and portable oxygen for use in isolation centres. She added that 300 isolation beds are ready, waiting to be placed in one wing of the upcoming Medical Complex at Kerugoya Referral Hospital.

In the past one week, various county teams have carried out sensitisation, enforcement and fumigation of various areas within the county.

Fumigation has been done at Kianyaga Police Station, Kiburu Dispensary and Baricho Health Centre. At the same time, a health promotion session on Covid-19 prevention and control was held at Njegas Health Centre while various eateries and market places have been inspected for compliance.

Public awareness campaigns have also been carried out in schools such as Thiba Secondary and Mathias Primary as well as among boda-boda riders in trading centres such as Ngariama, among others.