Tonga not ready to manage CoViD-19 patients

Case management, or the ability of Tonga’s Ministry of Health to accommodate and treat CoViD-19 patients, if the new coronavirus arrives in Tonga, remains a serious problem for the Ministry of Health to resolve, Dr Siale ‘Akau’ola said on Friday.

Tonga is one of only 15 countries in the world that has not reported any cases of CoViD-19.

If the virus does arrive, Tonga’s health services would struggle to accommodate the cases. Even a dozen cases would be difficult.

Dr ‘Akau’ola said the Ministry of Health had identified eight areas to address in its state of preparation for possible infections, but of these, case management remained a major concern.

“It is the biggest challenge that we are facing. How many patients we can treat here, taking into account the number of our staff and the state of our preparation.”

Dr ‘Akau’ola was thankful for the government support in introducing legislation and implementing declarations, so that the public would adjust their lifestyles to counter the virus, and prevent it from spreading in future.

The eight areas on the government’s CoViD-19 readiness work agenda are:

1. Proper implementation of the programme
2. Infection, prevention and control
3. Civilian, investigation of suspected cases.
4. Laboratory work.
5. Port of Entry.
6. Public Education.
7. Case Management
8. Logistical Support.

Poasi Tei, the Cabinet Minister responsible for Disaster Management pointed out that even if Tonga were to have only 10 or 11 CoViD-19 cases, “we do not have the staff and the facility in place to work with.”

Dr ‘Akau’ola confirmed that the CoViD-19 testing kits had arrived on April 23 and their CoViD-19 testing machine was expected to be in operation within a week.

Not everybody will be tested, “only suspected cases will be tested.”

Mu’a Health Centre

Renovation of the small Mu’a Health Centre, to become Tonga’s centre for CoViD-19 patients, was completed last week.