A worker disinfects rooms at the security and defence education centre in Phuoc Thoi ward in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, which is used to quarantine people at high risk to have Covid-19. (Photo: VNA)HCMCity (VNS/VNA) - Personnel working in quarantine areas, hospitals andcentres for diseases prevention and control across the country have beenworking hard as thousands of Vietnamese return home from abroad amid theCOVID-19 pandemic.
Staff at the international health quarantine centre in HCM City have notbeen home for the last two months, and have been working tirelessly to detectsuspected cases to halt the disease’s spread in the community.
Nguyen Ta Minh Quang, a worker at the centre, and his colleagues were stationedat the immigration and customs areas in HCM City’s Tan Son Nhat airport toguide passengers, who need to get their temperature checked and make a healthdeclaration.
They also answer questions passengers have.
All are screened for COVID-19 but also Ebola and Mers-CoV. Thosewith a fever are taken to doctors stationed in the airport for furtherexamination.
Dr Nguyen Hong Tam, director of the international health quarantine centre,said since COVID-19 broke out in late January, the centre’s 80 workers havebeen working very hard.
It began during the Lunar New Year holidays, and the staff did not spend themwith their family, he said.
In the beginning they were monitoring 3,500-4,500 passengers every day, and thefigure increased to 7,000, and even 11,000, when thousands of Vietnamese landedat airports, he said.
“We had to ask the Department of Health to augment personnelbecause our workers were overloaded.”
The centre’sstaff were always stressed because they were afraid some possibly infectedpassengers had gone missing since several people from COVID-19 countries hadeluded their efforts to quarantine them.
Since they are routinely in contact with people with COVID-19, they haveto strictly comply with preventive measures to avoid transmission in thecommunity.
So, after their shift, they have to disinfect before leaving the airport. Thosewith children have to stay in a hotel. Some have sent their children to theirgrandparents’ places.
Huynh Thi My Ngoc and her husband work at the centre and havesent their two children to her parents’ home in her hometown.
Staff at the Department of Infectious Diseases in Binh Thuan province’s GeneralHospital have asked their relatives or neighbours to take care of theirchildren.
Pham Thi Viet Hoa’s three children, for instance, have to take care of eachother.
She and her colleagues have to work hard and even skip lunch sometimes. Theyhave to stay back in their office since the hospital has treated nine patientswith COVID-19.
Her department has 17 doctors and nurses, who, after examinationor treatment, have to take off their protective gear, disinfect and changeclothes.
Dr Duong Thi Loi of the department said: “Stressed and missingour children, we encourage each other to fight. The health staff at thehospital also provide therapy to patients to reduce stress besidestreatment for COVID-19.”
Dr Nguyen Van Thanh, the hospital’s head, said there is one area for doctorsand nurses to stay.
In the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, at the security and defence educationcentre in O Mon district’s Phuoc Thoi ward, which is used as a quarantine area,its 30 employees have so far served more than 700 people including foreigners,day and night.
Their friendly attitude has comforted the quarantined people.
Pham Thanh Danh of HCM City’s District 2, who returned fromAustralia and was brought to the centre on March 23, said: “I felt worried atfirst but no longer. The room where I stay is clean and cool. The internetenables me to take part in online lessons taught by my university lecturers inAustralia.”
Being quarantined at the centre is better than being at home, he said.
Phan Hien of Dong Thap province, who returned from Singapore,said: “We are served three meals each day. The meals are ok.”
Pham Tuan Duy, a centre worker, said: “This is our task. We have to serve themwell and make people here feel comfortable and not worried. We feel happy whenthey feel satisfied.”
With foreigners not familiar with Vietnamese food, the staff ask them to writethe foods they want and get them, he added./.
VNA
