World Vision donates equipment to protect healthcare workers in Sierra Leone against COVID-19

As World Vision in Sierra Leone continues to support government strides to fight COVID-19, a symbolic donation was made on Thursday 16 April 2020 to the Ministry of Health & Sanitation at the Ministry’s Youyi Build car park. The donation of assorted Personal Protective Equipment’s (PPE) and Infection Prevention Control (IPC) materials is worth more than one billion Leones, which is over 100,000 US Dollars. 

Handing over the items to the Minister of Health and Sanitation, World Vision National Director James Chifwélu underlined that World Vision's objective in the COVID-19 fight is to scale up preventive measures to limit the spread of disease, strengthen health systems and workers, provide support for children impacted by COVID-19 through education, child protection, food security, and livelihoods and to collaborate and advocate to ensure that vulnerable children are protected.

James concluded by assuring the Minister of World Vision’s continued support; “We are together in the fight against COVID-19” he said.

Receiving the donated items, the Minister of Health and Sanitation Dr. Alpha T. Wuri, thanked World Vision for the gesture, saying that the support will go a long way in helping the country contain the virus and save its healthcare workers. “World Vision have helped us in so many ways. Thank you. Let others now know that we are indeed looking forward to more support; more so that they are now focusing not on hospitals but Peripheral Health Units (PHUs) in six districts. That is where the populace is, that is where there is a possibility of us getting some infection and therefore it has been unique for you to ensure that the primary health units are supported”, said the Minister.  

This donation will cover PPEs and IPC equipment for a total of 1,600 health workers in 406 Peripheral Health Units (PHUs) in 6 districts; Bo, Bonthe, Pujehun, Falaba, Kambia and Kono. Donated items included thousands of masks, coveralls, sterile gloves, hand-washing stations, liquid hand-wash, bleach for cleaning and hundreds of inferred thermometers for temperature checks.