The Ebola virus disease which has
been a thing of collective concern across West African region in the past few
months could be on the brink of taking a whole new dimension if urgent
government steps are not taken in the interest of the collective health
security within affected States and Countries.
The Federal Ministry of Health report
stated that as at 3rd September 2014, 18 Ebola cases have been
confirmed in Nigeria with Lagos having 14 and Port Harcourt 4. This brings
Nigeria Ebola Virus Disease statistics to 18 confirmed cases with 7 deaths. Though a number of quarantine and isolation
centres have been set up across many States of Nigeria in preparedness for case
management of further possible infected cases.
In
WHO's latest situation update on Port Harcourt, the agency warns "the outbreak of Ebola virus disease in Port Harcourt
has the potential to grow larger and spread faster than the one in Lagos." There are now 3 confirmed cases in Port Harcourt. The
first was a close contact of the first case in Nigeria. This person fled
quarantine in Lagos, and was treated in a hotel in Port Harcourt from 1 to 3
August. The treating doctor developed symptoms on 11 August but continued to
treat patients, including performing operations, until 13 August. He was
hospitalised on 16th, died on 22nd and Ebola was confirmed on 27th. He had
many contacts with friends and relatives while infectious, and even during
hospitalisation, where WHO says "he was attended by the majority of the
hospital’s health care staff". There are over 200 contacts under
surveillance, of whom about 60 have had high or very
high risk exposure.
This WHO’s recent update when placed in juxtaposition with
the Nigerian government recent announcement on reversal of resumption date in
Nigerian schools from 13th October 2014 to 22nd September
2014, it gives everyone reasons to be concerned on how we intend to control the
Ebola Virus Disease when allowed to get into the schools. When the Federal
Government of Nigeria earlier with the month of August 2014 announced a shift
in the Nigerian schools proposed resumption date from 22nd September
to 13th October 2014, a number of Public Health experts saw that
decision as very timely and widely adjudged as right in absolute. The recent
resumption date change of 22nd September has a huge potential of
taking the Ebola Virus Disease infection in Nigeria to a whole new dimension
and I personally feel this very decision should be further reviewed by
Government in Public Health interest.
I recall the words of a Ugandan I met
at Abuja who works with UNAIDS, he told me Uganda has had a number of Ebola
Virus Disease outbreaks which has led the country into developing a better
capacity to managing successive outbreaks based on lesson learnt in the
previous ones. He told me the first thing Government does is to close down all
schools and even sometimes the markets, this is just a natural thing to do as a
further containment measure to guide against uncontrollable spread.
When we use Port Harcourt as our case
study in the context of this presentation, you will realise school resumption could
fuel the wild spread of this disease beyond the capacity of the State. Nigeria
has done well thus far in the context of how the Government of Lagos State, The
Federal Ministry of Health and Centre for Disease Control (CDC)’s combined efforts
in ensuring the disease is kept within a controllable limit. We have about 200
contacts recorded in Port Harcourt of whom 60 persons have had high risk
exposure as reported by WHO, but we must understand there may be some contacts
that escaped unidentified and unreported and these persons live within the
society without any form of symptoms because they are still within the widow
period of 2 – 21 days and they are not in any way under quarantine of
surveillance. These sets of potential Ebola Virus Disease infected escapees may
be married with children who may be amongst the children who are bound to
resume schools come 22nd September alongside children from different
homes, yet the schools are not trained on what to do when they see a school
child that complains of illness with high temperature above 37.2 degree
centigrade or shows any symptom of illness. We must understand that once a
child has contracted this disease, there is a very high likelihood of the
child’s parents and siblings getting infected also.
This list could go on and on but I
would rather think instead of this hasty resumption date that has just been
announced by Government, we should allow the children remain at home until we
are clear on the true position of EVD based on the recent development while we
monitor the yielded result of the containment measures already deployed. The
new resumption date is rather creating panic and further fear in parents amongst who are many that are reluctant to send their children back to schools.
Let’s even look at the children from
homes where parents have visited any of the high risk Ebola Virus Disease prevalent
countries, no one has this fact neither is anyone sure of the current health
conditions of such parents and even if they have the symptoms of EVD their
wards will still come to school where they would miss up with other children
from different homes. This is going to be too messy and highly difficult for us
all to manage and I think the Government needs to clearly review the resumption
decision.
Within last week, I had the
opportunity of discussing with a couple of parents and I also share in their
fear as expressed. One of the parents who works in the bank told me her
daughter is still very tender and due to resume crèche but she is so scared and
not sure if she wants to allow the child to resume because of this Ebola scare
and recent development. I am sure many parents, including school teachers and
school proprietors share in this same fear because everyone is involved in this
long chain or cycle of possible infection if this disease is allowed to enter
our schools.
I by this appeal once more to the
Federal Government of Nigeria and other agencies responsible for this recent
school resumption date’s decision to please review the inherent risk and consequences
this decision has on the safety and security of the health of Nigerian public
and ensure a better decision is arrived at in the interest of collective safety
of Nigerians.
Kindly read and leave a comment.
I can be reached at ehi@ohsm.com.ng
