Aimdu T. Mattia, a COVID-19 survivor, has told Premier News on Tuesday September 1, 2020, that together with five other members of his household were stigmatized after they had been discharged from a COVID-19 treatment Centre.
Mattia spoke to Premier News from an interview at the Freetown Cheshire home where he temporarily stays, while he goes through psycho-social counselling to reverse the trauma he suffered.
Mattia hails from Mattru Jong in Bonthe District. He has two wives the younger, also a survivor, is also going through the same therapy as his husband.
Mattia had a thriving business as an electronic Mechanic, supervising five apprentices, out of which he supported nineteen dependents. He wants fellow Sierra Leoneans to stop stigmatizing others like him, who have survived. He would have loved to have been reintegrated and accepted into the community where he resides without having being stigmatized, where his experience could have been handy in admonishing others on how to prevent the disease, as the nation continues to fight COVID-19 collectively.
This, however is not the case. “On returning home many people distanced themselves from me and by so doing they started calling me ‘Da Corona man’ (The man with COVID-19). Only one of my wives and children with some family members were around me,” he said.
Mattia revealed that he is specialized in repairing electronic equipment which he and two of his trainees do for sustenance, as it is their only means to earn money for up keeping of his family. But after he had been discharged people stopped frequenting his workshop to solicit his service.
He is the Chairpersons of Bonthe District Disabled Right Committee (Bonddrico). He pleaded to people with an inclination to stigmatize survivors to cease from doing so, adding that stigmatizing survivors would affect their mental being thus causing mental illness.
He explained that he and five of his household contacted the virus from a neighbour who returned home after visiting a family member in another district during the Inter-district partial lockdown. He added that when that neighbour returned on May 28, he interacted with him on several occasions.
“Few days after interacting with my neighbour on June 1, I started feeling feverish with high body temperature and exhibiting other signs and symptoms of COVID-19,” Mattia said, adding that that gave cause for him to present himself for medical examination and treatment at the nearest health centre at Mattru Jong.
“Upon arrival at the medical centre on June 2, health workers took my swab for laboratory testing to find the cause of my illness. Apparently, the test result revealed that the cause of my illness was Malaria. As a result of that I was sent home by the health workers with some medication given to me for treatment,” he said.
He added that later while he was resting at home at noon he woke up and he noticed that his house had been put under quarantine by health officials.
“On June 3, health workers took the swab of one of my wives, two of my children, two of my apprentices for laboratory testing, and all of the results proved positive of the Coronavirus,” he said.
He lamented that six of them were taken to the United Brethren treatment centre where health workers administered COVID-19 treatment to them.
He further explained that he completed his treatment in 24 days and was eventually discharged and declared as free from COVID-19 with a certificate, adding that few days later the rest of his household was also discharged.
He commented that, at the treatment Centre the reception they got was not hospitable. He claimed that the quality of the food which they were given was inadequate. According to him, the Isolation Room was unhygienic, and with an uncomfortable mattress apportioned to him which did not suit his comfort because the surface where the mattress was placed was small in size which did not offer room for him to move his body while sleeping.
Mattia noted that since he and his family could no longer withstand stigmatization from some community people in the area where he stays in Mattru Jong, he decided to arrange to be relocated, and was fortunate to contact Dr. Abdulai Dumbuya, the Chief Executive Officer of Dorothy Springer Trust, who willingly assisted in the facilitation of his temporal relocation to Cheshire home in Freetown.
He pointed out that he is married to two wives with seven children with five apprentices and four other family members at his household, adding that nineteen member of his household depends on him for survival.
“Since I was discharged and returned home people are afraid to bring their electronic equipment for repair as they fear contact with me would make them have the virus,” he concluded.
By George M.O. Williams
03/09/2020. ISSUE NO: 7901