CÔTE D’IVOIRE – Nestlé Côte d’Ivoire has donated two ventilators to the Infectious and Tropical Disease Service unit of the Treichville University Hospital, where critical COVID-19 patients are referred to in Côte d’Ivoire heeding to the call of national solidarity in fighting the pandemic.
The idea spearheaded by Dr. Patricia Amondji, Dr. Marie-Claude Kouassi and Dr. Eric Bouaffon, all doctors at Nestlé Côte d’Ivoire will complement the 18 ventilators ordered by the government in addition to the four already available in this West African country of 25 million inhabitants.
“We are happy we heeded the call because, as doctors, we are convinced that the battle against COVID-19 can only be won if we minimize transmissions and provide doctors with medical and personal protective equipment to enable them treat severe cases, especially people with underlying conditions who need to be assisted by ventilators to stay alive,” Dr. Amondji said.
According to the company’s press-release, there were also 10 automatic hospital beds, gowns and surgical masks offered for distribution by the Treichville COVID-19 unit to the 15 care units, 14 screening facilities and three confinement centers newly opened in the country to manage the pandemic in a decentralized manner.
The Swiss Ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire Anne Lugon-Moulin commended the Ivorian Government on its response to the pandemic, adding, “I am impressed by the on-going efforts to raise awareness about the preventive measures to adopt in order to minimize the spread of the coronavirus.
“The donation is timely, as the need for ventilators exceeds available equipment. Expressions of solidarity and support to those impacted by COVID-19 are becoming more commonplace; and Nestlé and its employees have stood up and helped around the world,” stated the company.
A few weeks ago the food giant supported 170,000 families and frontline health workers with a donation worth US$3.4m in Central and West Africa.
At a time when hunger is a growing concern, the company donated food and beverages to 170,000 families, corresponding to 850,000 people, across the region in Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameron, Gabon, Mali, Niger and Nigeria.
In addition to that, Nestlé also contributed masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) to keep frontline health workers safe. The company also donated medical equipment to hospitals in Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Senegal. Additionally, in Burkina Faso, it will donate three ventilators, for use in intensive care units.
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