Clinical and Socio-demographic Profile of the First 33 COVID-19 Cases Treated at Dedicated Treatment Center in Ethiopia

BACKGROUND:Severe respiratory tract infection caused by family of Corona viruses has become world pandemic. The purpose of this study was to describe the first few COVID 19 cases in Ethiopia.METHOD: Descriptive study was conducted on the first 33 consecutive RT-PCR confirmed COVID 19 cases diagnosed and managed at Ekka-Kotebe COVID Treatment Center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.RESULT: The median age of the cases was 36 years. Cough, headache and fever were the most frequent symptoms. Diarrhea, sore throats, loss of taste and/or smell sensation were among the rare symptoms. Most (84.8%) had mild to moderate disease, and 15.2%(n=5) were critical at the time of admission. Among the five ICU admissions, four patients required invasive mechanical ventilation. Thirty cases were discharged after two pairs of nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal samples turned negative for SARS CoV2. Three cases from the ICU died while on mechanical ventilator. The age of the two deaths was 65 years, and one was 60 years. With the exception of three, all cases were either imported from abroad or had contact with confirmed cases.CONCLUSION: Most of our patients were in the younger age group with male predominance and few with comorbidities. Cough was the commonest symptom followed by headache and fever. As it was in the early stage of the pandemic, observation of more cases in the future will reveal further clinical and demographic profiles of COVID-19 cases in Ethiopia

Readiness and early response to COVID-19: achievements, challenges and lessons learnt in Ethiopia

Declaration of the novel coronavirus disease as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern necessitated countries to get ready to respond. Here, we describe key achievements, challenges and lessons learnt during the readiness and early response to COVID-19 in Ethiopia. Readiness activities commenced as early as January 2020 with the activation of a national Public Health Emergency Operations Centre and COVID-19 Incident Management System (IMS) by the Ethiopian Public Health Institute. The COVID-19 IMS conducted rapid risk assessments, developed scenario-based contingency plans, national COVID-19 guidelines and facilitated the enhancement of early warning and monitoring mechanisms. Early activation of a coordination mechanism and strengthening of detection and response capacities contributed to getting the country ready on time and mounting an effective early response. High-level political leadership and commitment led to focused efforts in coordination of response interventions. Health screening, mandatory 14-day quarantine and testing established for all international travellers arriving into the country slowed down the influx of travellers. The International Health Regulations (IHR) capacities in the country served as a good foundation for timely readiness and response. Leveraging on existing IHR capacities in the country built prior to COVID-19 helped slow down the importation and mitigated uncontrolled spread of the disease in the country. Challenges experienced included late operationalisation of a multisectoral coordination platform, shortage of personal protective equipment resulting from global disruption of importation and the huge influx of over 10 000 returnees from different COVID-19-affected countries over a short period of time with resultant constrain on response resources

Knowledge, practice and associated factors towards the prevention of COVID-19 among high-risk groups: A cross-sectional study in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

BackgroundCoronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a highly transmittable virus that continues to disrupt livelihoods, particularly those of low-income segments of society, around the world. In Ethiopia, more specifically in the capital city of Addis Ababa, a sudden increase in the number of confirmed positive cases in high-risk groups of the community has been observed over the last few weeks of the first case. Therefore, this study aims to assess knowledge, practice and associated factors that can contribute to the prevention of COVID-19 among high-risk groups in Addis Ababa.MethodsA cross-sectional in person survey (n = 6007) was conducted from 14-30 April, 2020 following a prioritization within high-risk groups in Addis Ababa. The study area targeted bus stations, public transport drivers, air transport infrastructure, health facilities, public and private pharmacies, hotels, government-owned and private banks, telecom centers, trade centers, orphanages, elderly centers, prison, prisons and selected slum areas where the people live in a crowded areas. A questionnaire comprised of four sections (demographics, knowledge, practice and reported symptoms) was used for data collection. The outcomes (knowledge on the transmission and prevention of COVID-19 and practice) were measured using four items. A multi variable logistic regression was applied with adjustment for potential confounding.ResultsAbout half (48%, 95% CI: 46-49) of the study participants had poor knowledge on the transmission mode of COVID-19 whereas six out of ten (60%, 95% CI: 58-61) had good knowledge on prevention methods for COVID-19. The practice of preventive measures towards COVID-19 was found to be low (49%, 95% CI: 48-50). Factors that influence knowledge on COVID-19 transmission mechanisms were female gender, older age, occupation (health care and grocery worker), lower income and the use of the 8335 free call centre. Older age, occupation (being a health worker), middle income, experience of respiratory illness and religion were significantly associated with being knowledgeable about the prevention methods for COVID-19. The study found that occupation, religion, income, knowledge on the transmission and prevention of COVID-19 were associated with the practice of precautionary measures towards COVID-19.ConclusionThe study highlighted that there was moderate knowledge about transmission modes and prevention mechanisms. Similarly, there was moderate practice of measures that contribute towards the prevention of COVID-19 among these priority and high-risk communities of Addis Ababa. There is an urgent need to fill the knowledge gap in terms of transmission mode and prevention methods of COVID-19 to improve prevention practices and control the spread of COVID-19. Use of female public figures and religious leaders could support the effort towards the increase in awareness