Recently, there have been allegations about the COVID-19 response in the country including among others that two patients died from a faulty Oxygen Plant at Mulago National Referral Hospital, fake masks for Doctors, and unfounded doubt on the country’s capacity to respond to the pandemic.
However, since the hospital opened a COVID-19 Treatment Unit (CTU) early in March, a number of patients have been treated and discharged. According to experts at the hospital, the successful management of the patients has been due to the available reliable oxygen plant that provides the much-needed oxygen for critical patients.
The center provides a number of other services including clinical and supportive treatment for confirmed COVID-19 patients, psycho-social support to COVID-19 patients, clinical and supportive treatment for presumptive patients (these are patients with COVID-19 like symptoms pending laboratory tests).
The center also provides post-COVID-19 follow-up care and there is a help desk that attends to the concerns of the relatives as well as the public.
The latest figures show that Mulago has had a cumulative admission of 2,456 patients, with a total discharge of 2,137 and the current admission stands at 160 (of these 95 severe cases in HDU, 5 critical cases in ICU and 60 in general ward). The total fatalities currently stand at 150 while the self-requested transfers out of Mulago to other units five (5) in total.
Reliable Oxygen Available
An article published by Daily Monitor titled: “Dying with dignity” on November 29th 2020 claimed that two patients died from Mulago Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in August this year due to lack of oxygen.
The Hospital, however, noted that this is not true as the hospital has reliable oxygen supplied by Silverbacks Pharmacy, a company with a track record for supplying oxygen to Mulago and other hospitals across the country.
Silverbacks Pharmacy had successfully supplied oxygen for regional hospitals for many years before they supplied and installed the oxygen plant at Mulago. Ever since its installation, it has successfully supplied all hospitals in Uganda with oxygen, including other hospitals in regional countries.
According to Dr Byarugaba Baterana the executive director of Mulago hospital, the patients, who include a 70-year-old referral from Rubaga Hospital ICU, a 27-year-old case referred from Hoima Regional Referral Hospital, and 46-year-old case, all died of severe COVID-19 with multi-organ dysfunction.
"It is therefore not true that the patients died due to lack of oxygen. During this period, the Mulago Hospital ICU had other patients who posted better outcomes," said Dr Baterana says in a statement seen by the Kampala Post.
Dr Baterana further explains that COVID 19 causes mild to moderately severe disease which in majority of cases, can be self-limiting.
"About 20% of cases progress to very severe disease leading to multiple organs in the body failing to function. Depending on the severity of the organ dysfunction, the outcome is usually bad with most patients who progress to this stage succumbing to the disease. As of March to April 2020 Covid-19 was the 3rd leading cause of death in USA after Heart diseases and Cancer," says the Doctor.
About the oxygen supplier
Silverbacks Pharmacy Limited (the “Company”) is a medical equipment and pharmaceutical supplies company that was incorporated at the Uganda Registration Services Bureau in Kampala in 2004.
The Company has been licensed by the National Drug Authority since 2004 to date and is registered as a Provider with the Public Procurement and Disposal of Assets Authority and has been the sole distributor for the of Ozcan Kardesler brand Oxygen Plants in Uganda since 2015 to date.
The Company has in the past 5 years installed and maintained 14 medical oxygen plants at the following regional referral hospitals across Uganda: (a) Jinja; (b) Mubende, (c)Hoima, (d) Soroti (e) Lira (f) Gulu (g) Fort Portal (h) Mbale, (i)Masaka (j) Mbarara; (k)Kabale; (l) Naguru; (m) Arua; and (n) Moroto.
Each of the above hospitals have oxygen plants whose capacity is 15m3/hr of medical grade oxygen. The Company has a proven track record and trained technical staff who maintain the different plants.
Covid-19 Response
Prior to the Covid-19 global pandemic, Silverbacks Pharmacy participated in a tender issued by Mulago National Referral Hospital for the installation of an oxygen plant. Silverbacks emerged the best evaluated bidder for Procurement Reference Number MHC/SERVICES/19-20/00098.
As part of the Covid-19 national response, Ministry of Health (MOH) issued a Request For Quotations to which Silverbacks Pharmacy responded. MOH then contracted Silverbacks Pharmacy under Procurement Reference MOH/SUPLS/19-20/137 to supply and install 7 medical oxygen plants the details of which are below.
- Mulago National Referral Hospital - 4 oxygen plants. (3 plants with a capacity of 30m3/hr each, and 1 plant with a capacity of 35m3/hr)
- Entebbe Grade B Hospital - 1 Oxygen plant with a 16m3/hr capacity
- Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital - 1 plant with a capacity of 11 m3/hr
- Kayunga Hospital - 1 plant with a capacity of 11 m3/hr
This procurement also included 3 filling stations, 450 cylinders, 450 regulators, humidifier bottles and cannulas at a cost of Uganda Shillings 6.4 Billion. The Company provided MOH with an Advance Payment Guarantee as security.
This website has learnt that the same supplier installed oxygen plants in 13 RRH in 2017 at the same cost that GOU is spending on only 2 oxygen plants today (FY2019/20”.
Additionally, In 2017, the government procured 13 medical oxygen plants with a capacity of 15m3/hr each. In 2020, GOU procured 7 oxygen plants and not 2 as alleged above. The total installed capacity of the plants supplied in 2017 was 195m3/hr, at a cost of USD 1.8 M (the equivalent of Uganda Shillings 6.786 billion). The total installed capacity of the plants supplied in 2020 was 163m3/hr at a cost of Uganda Shillings 6.4 billion. These procurements differed in specifications of plant size and works. In 2020 the price disparity is brought about by the following;
a) additional items procured in 2020; that is (450 cylinders, 450 regulators and accessories)
b) air freight due to the emergency nature of the procurement;
c) exchange rate difference between 2017 and 2020.
By September 2020, all medical oxygen plants, cylinders and accessories were delivered in via AWB NO 235-ISL-77399770 and cylinders were distributed to 22 hospitals as per the MOH delivery schedule.
Subsequently, advance payment from MOH was obtained due to the emergency nature of the procurement, the global pandemic situation, global scarcity and high demand of oxygen supplies and equipment related to treatment Covid-19 worldwide
