15/01/2016
Patients flee as doctor of
Lassa fever victims dies
By Emeka Anuforo, Azimazi
Momoh Jimoh (Abuja), Wole
Oyebode (Lagos) and Ann
Godwin (Port Harcourt) on
January 15, 2016 2:51 am
Tweet
Prof. Isaac Folorunso
Adewole
• Govt sets up isolation
centre in P’Harcourt
• 15 on surveillance, 35
identified as contact persons
• LASUTH denies admitting
patients
A MEDICAL doctor in Rivers
State has been confirmed
dead after being diagnosed
of Lassa fever in the state’s
apex hospital, the Brewaithe
Memorial Specialist Hospital
(BMH), Port Harcourt.
The situation caused panic
within the hospital as some
patients were seen fleeing
the facility with their
belongings. Investigations
revealed that the doctor,
whose name was undisclosed
as at press time, was one of
the health officers that
attended to the victims.
State Chairman of the Nigeria
Medical Association (NMA),
Dr. Furo Green, while
confirming the incident, said
the co**se had been taken
away for burial.
This brings the casualty
figure from the ailment in the
state to three. Two deaths,
involving a mother and her
child, were recorded last
week.
Green called for caution,
saying there was no cause
for panic as “everything is
under control.”
“The hospital has placed
those who have contact with
the doctor under surveillance
and all the equipment and
facilities used in treating him
and the ones used by him
have been confiscated.
“So, there is no need to
panic. But for now, there is
emergency situation in BMH.
The hospital is not accepting
patients for now,” he added.
Meanwhile, the outbreak of
Lassa fever in Nigeria, which
had in the last one week
claimed several lives, was
yesterday described as a
national embarrassment by
the Minister of Health, Prof.
Isaac Adewole.
Adewole, who was making
submissions before the
senate committee on Health
on efforts being made by his
ministry at curtailing the
outbreak, said the disease
being a native of West Africa,
was supposed to have been
rendered impotent over the
years.
“Unlike Ebola, which took the
nation by surprise last year,
after being imported from
Liberia by an infected person,
Lassa fever which has over
the years registered its
presence in the country,
supposed not to have taken
us by surprise, had infected
people reported promptly,”
he said.
He disclosed that the current
outbreak started in August
last year in Foka village in
Niger State but snowballed
into an outbreak now across
nine states of the federation
due to non-reportage of its
infection and death of victims
to the appropriate
authorities.
According to him, the Foka
incident in Niger State last
year killed not less than 17
villagers in succession
without prompt report to the
state government due to
superstitious belief.
He said there are nine
labouratory centres across
the country for prompt
detection of the infectious
virus carried by rodents out
of which six are functioning
now in Ibadan, Abuja,
Maiduguri, Kano, Iruwa etc.
Also, residents have been
advised not to panic as the
University of Port Harcourt
Teaching Hospital (UPTH) has
the capacity to diagnose
Lassa fever because a
treatment centre has been
set up with rapid response
team ready to take samples,
and administer treatment,
according to the Chief
Medical Director, Prof. Aaron
Ojule.
He canvassed good hygiene
total restraint from self-
medication whenever
feverish symptoms surface,
urging calm, “as the deadly
disease is not as lethal as
Ebola.”
Ojule, in an interview with
The Guardian however,
advised health practitioners
to be very careful with
people with persistent fever
and to always wear
protective equipment as well
as report any incident to the
Lassa fever treatment centre
at the hospital.
This happened as doctors in
the state embarked on a
three-day strike following the
continuous kidnap of their
colleagues.
Citing reasons for its action,
the NMA chairman regretted
that two of its members
were kidnapped a few days
ago while 21 of its members
were abducted last year.
The regular abduction of
doctors in the state last year
brought the health sector to
a stand still as the doctors
embarked on a prolonged
industrial action, protesting
the incidents.
Some of the victims died in
the hands of their abductors,
while some were released
after sustaining gunshot
injuries.
Like a wild fire, reminiscent
of the dreaded Ebola virus,
Lassa fever and the deaths it
has so far unleashed on 10
states are spreading fear
across the country. And this
should compel Nigerians to
seek solace in personal
hygiene, according to some
stakeholders in the health
sector.
In response to the potentially
epidemic situation, the
National Hospital, Abuja
where a 33-year-old man
died of the virus on
Wednesday, has set up an
isolation centre within the
facility. The centre, officials
said, is for the treatment of
the ailment.
The Federal Government has
also placed 15 persons under
surveillance following the
incident recorded in the
Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Government is also tracing
35 persons who may have
had contact with the victim is
also ongoing.
Spokesperson of the National
Hospital, Mr. Tayo Hastrup,
who confirmed the
development, stressed that a
medical team had been put
on notice to deal with any
emergency situation.
He noted that so far tests
conducted on the other
suspected patient came were
negative.
In the meantime, the Minister
of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole
said the failure of the
notification system made it
impossible for the Ministry to
response promptly to the
situation in Niger State,
reiterating that the Federal
Government’s mission and
mandate in the health sector
was to keep every Nigerian
safe.
Ifeanyi Godwin, a family
physician, in a chat with The
Guardian yesterday said,
contrary to the general belief
that the disease could only
be caused by certain specie,
all rodents, including house
rats, are potential carriers of
Lassa Fever. Godwin, who is
also the Deputy Medical
Director at the Kupa Hospital
in Lagos State, warned
against poor personal
hygiene.
Godwin described Lassa virus
as zoonotic, meaning “it is
transmitted from animals. It
is (caused) by rodents (rats),
the common species in
equatorial Africa. It transmits
by contaminating human
food with rodent feaces,
urine. It can also occur
through aerosol in air, which
can be inhaled. It can enter
through broken skin and
mucus membranes and can
be transmitted from person
to person,’ he explained.
Asked to suggest ways of
avoiding the disease, Godwin
said all measures adopted to
ward off the Ebola virus
should be applied now.
According to him, “people
should keep clean
environment, avoid uncooked
food, wash fruits and
vegetables properly and wear
gloves, goggles and gowns
when nursing infected
person. All the measures
adopted during Ebola should
be instituted to avoid an
epidemic.”
Meanwhile, the Lagos State
University Teaching Hospital
(LASUTH), Ikeja, yesterday
denied admitting the first
Lassa fever patient in Lagos
State.
Management of the hospital
said, contrary to reports
making the rounds, Lagos is
yet to record any case of
Lassa fever.
Chief Medical Director of the
hospital, Prof. Adewale Oke,
said that the medical
emergency session of the
hospital received a bleeding
patient that has not been
linked to the deadly Lassa
viral disease.
Oke said that the patient was
duly attended to and now in
stable condition and
receiving treatment at the
medical emergency ward of
the hospital.
He added that the facility was
ready to attended to all
illnesses, included suspected
case of Lassa, but “as we
speak, there is no case of
Lassa in Lagos State or
LASUTH.”
“Our emergency department
are equally open and
available to receive all
patients to stabilise
suspected case and managed
according to the protocol of
Lagos State Ministry of
Health for suspected Lassa
fever cases,” Oke said.
