Schulz disappointed with handling of case

Joanne Schulz, who was PNG’s first local COVID-19 case, has expressed disappointment at the way her case was handled.

The East New Britain woman, who was declared positive on April 6th, said the Government handled her case “poorly”.

“Especially when it was a health issue,” she said.

“Our number one code of medical ethics is patient confidentiality and apparently, that code of ethics did not apply for me as a patient of COVID-19.

“I am very disheartened by the fact that my identity and results was leaked to the corporate community in East New Britain as well as the public.

“The communities and LLGs here had that knowledge before my case doctor even relayed the result to me.

“I would suggest to the Government that if in the near future, or at any other time in this life this country is faced with another pandemic or situation such as the one that we’re in, they would have professionals deal with it,” Schulz said.

The health advocate believes medical professionals are better equipped when it comes to approaching or dealing with cases such as hers.

“Doctors, nurses and professors are renowned for the research and the work that they do in health here in PNG,” she continued.

“I believe in the health system and I believe in the health professionals. And I would never discredit them for the generations of work, commitment and tireless study they do in this field. But I would ask and suggest to the government to allow them to be challenged in their own field. Allow them to practice the knowledge and the resource that they are in a situation like this.

“I know and I believe that if it was up to the health professionals, they would have known better how to protect my identity.”

Meantime, Schulz has fully recovered from COVID-19 after receiving her third negative test result on April 22nd. However, she is waiting on the Government to officially declare her COVID-19-free as well as discharge her from home isolation.

Author: 
Carmella Gware