THE first phase of the construction of Zimbabwe’s public health emergency outbreak operation centre located at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals will be complete by March, a health expert has said.
By Kudakwashe Pembere
This centre comes as part of the recommendations by the World Health Organisation promoting the use of one tool to streamline the response: a Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC).
These centres are an essential part of a response because they provide a physical location for the management team to coordinate information and resources.
In an interview with the team leader of the Cholera Secretariat Dr Farai Charasika said the EOC is being funded by HigherLife Foundation.
“We are supporting the ministry of health in establishing the public health emergency operation centre which is where public health outbreaks are coordinated from. We started this work basically in October following the September Cholera outbreak. We made a long term commitment to support the Ministry of Health and Childcare,” he said,
He said the first phase will be done next month.
“In terms of the Emergency outbreak Centre EOC that you see here at Parirenyatwa Hospital. We have begun the work. Its in phases. The first phase will be complete mid-March which will allow the team to use the main conferencing room as well as the technology room and some of the offices. Phase two will be finished in August and phase three by the end of the year,” Dr Charasika.
Dr Charasika said the first phase cost US$1, 5 million dollars with the whole project estimated to be valued at US$9million.
“In terms of investment, Phase one is an investment of US$1, 5 million which we are currently working in. but there is an estimate which we are still to verify because of the fluctuating prices based on the costings that we have received that possibly this could go up to US$9 million we have received for the next two phases. That last figure is a moving target,” he said. “Once this is place, the Ministry will be able to respond to diseases in time and make sure that even small outbreaks are contained. And that there will be no further spread of outbreaks.”
He also said the construction cost is being drawn down from the Cholera Response Fund from Econet. Early this month, Econet executive chairperson Dr Strive Masiyiwa and his wife Tsitsi announced that they would be pumping in US$60 million towards the fight against cholera alongside improving water and sanitation in Harare.
“In terms of funding as you know there were two announcements. There has been the initial US$10 million and the following US$60 million, combined to a total investment of $70 million. So the money is being funded from that pool of cholera fund. We need to emphasize that it’s not only public health that we will be working on.
“We are also going to be working on the WASH. So we have been overhauling sewer pipes in Mufakose, Glen View, Budiriro and Glen Norah. There is money spent in those areas to make sure that the underlying issues of sewer problems are addressed,” he said.
The core components of a PHEOC include plans and procedures; physical infrastructure; information and communication technology infrastructure; telecommunications systems; and human resources.
