Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Akwa Ibom State branch, has made a passionate appeal to the state government for the upgrade of the existing laboratory facilities to cope with the emerging viral diseases, particularly, Lassa fever.
There is no such facility in Akwa Ibom State, and health workers have to send samples to Irrua in Edo State for test and confirmation.
Speaking in an interview with BusinessDay in Uyo, the state capital, Augustine Umoh, the NMA chairman, said the existing medical laboratory in the state should be expanded, while regional laboratories should be resuscitated.
Umoh, who is a consultant gynaecologist and obstetrician at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, said, both the state and federal governments should “build on the gains made in tackling the Ebola Virus Disease,’’ adding that good emergency measures should be provided by governments in dealing with diseases.
He advised people to take the issue of environmental sanitation seriously, saying that rats should be prevented from having contacts with food items while fresh foodstuff should be washed and cooked properly, while advising people to seek medical attention in health facilities.
“Don’t display food items; all foodstuffs must be covered; health workers should wear gloves and body fluid should be avoided, and proper disposition of wastes and sharps should be undertaken,’’ he said.
Umoh, who also thanked the state government for paying the allowances of house officers, disclosed that, newly employed health workers, including doctors and nurses would soon be paid as according to him, he has received the assurances of the state government that payment would be carried out beginning, January this year.
He also lauded the state government for appointing many members of the association, as permanent secretaries are saying it was a mark of confidence by the state government, and urged doctors in the state to ‘show good example in the discharge of your responsibilities.’’
Meanwhile, Etiobong Etuk-Umana, consultant, family medicine, has allayed fears of the outbreak of the disease in Akwa Ibom State, saying there was no such case in the state.
In a lecture on Lassa fever presented at the Annual General Meeting of the National Association of Government General Medical and Dentists Practitioners (NAGGMDP), in Uyo, Etuk Umana who is also a consultant at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, said test carried out on a suspected case showed that it was not Lassa Fever.
He also emphasised the need for high personal hygiene, adding that left out over food should be stored in rodent proof containers, while he also suggested that food should be prepared for the number of people available, to avoid left over so as not to attract rats to the house.
