Experts have called for improved infection control checks in hospitals across the country amidst heightened fears, following the death from Ebola of a Liberian, Patrick Sawyer in Lagos
This concern now borders on full-blown panic as yesterday, minister of health Onyebuchi Chukwu, announced that the Nigerian doctor (name withheld) who treated Sawyer has tested positive for the highly contagious virus.
Thomas Frieden, director, United States Centre for Disease Control and Prevention said that the Ebola virus, one of the most deadly in the world, could be stopped from becoming a global epidemic through hospital infection control.
“We do know how to stop Ebola. Its old-fashioned, plain and simple public health: find the patients, make sure they get treated, find their contacts, track them, educate people and do infection control in hospitals,” Frieden said.
Providing more information on the plight of the infected medical doctor, Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Jide Idris, revealed that this latest infected patient is female and one of eight medical personnel that had direct contact with the late Sawyer.
Speaking at a press briefing Monday, at the Central Public Health Laboratory Services, Yaba Lagos, Idris said she may have contracted the deadly disease before it was discovered that the Liberian was infected.
“As at today, one person out of the eight people who had direct contact with the late victim of Ebola has tested positive. The state has established isolation and treatment centers to hospitalise this patient,” Idris said.
He adds, “The staff at this centre have also been trained on how to treat and handle the patients under their care. The hospital is also provided with enough facilities to ensure that the officials and other patients do not contact the virus. The patients under our surveillance were those who had personal contact with the late Liberian. And the rapid response team had been in communication with these patients who developed fever and other symptoms.”
The commissioner assured that tracking all those who had contact with the late Liberian will continue intensely.
“The contact remain in isolation until the confirmatory results are in and those who test positive for the virus, will remain in isolation until they are no longer infectious. The occurrence of secondary cases was expected, given the nature of the contact these people had with the patient from Liberia. This was because they were unaware of the patient’s status; until the management of the hospital informed the state government of the development,” idris said.
He appealed to members of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) who are still on strike to call it off and join government’s team to fight the virus.
ALEXANDER CHIEJINA & JOSHUA BASSEY
