A United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH) nurse was last week rushed to the theatre after a nasal swab used to collect a COVID-19 sample reportedly broke inside his nose.
The nurse (name witheld) who is a Sister-In-Charge was reportedley operated on and the swab was removed
The clinical test sample is called a Nasopharyngeal swab and is inserted through the nose to collect nasal secretions from the back of the nose and throat.
This diagnostic method is commonly used in the testing of suspected cases such as the coronavirus.
Sources at the hospital told CITE that the incident took place when health workers were being tested for COVID-19, as part of an ongoing exercise at all hospitals.
“The sister in charge was operated on and was kept in the ICU for monitoring,” sources claimed.
Contacted for a comment, UBH clinical director, Dr Narcisius Dzvanga, said he had not heard of the matter.
“This was not brought to my attention, ” he told CITE.
According to one medical doctor who was asked if it was possible that a nasopharyngeal swab can break accidentally, he said it was possible if not handled properly.
“We don’t encourage untrained people to poke items into the nasopharyngeal space,” said the doctor.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe has 34 confirmed cases, including five recoveries and four deaths.
