By Kehinde Bamigbetan
With the scary increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in Nigeria peaking at 288 persons with six deaths, medical officers managing to combat the pandemic at the local government areas have scored residents’ compliance with the rules low and advocated for more action.
But they were observant enough to identify the hurdles – hunger and job loss – caused by the depressed economy as the driving forces of the resistance to the government’s appeals and enforcement of the self-isolation policy.
Speaking at the first webinar COVID-19 Management Show organised by Echonews Commmunity Newspaper, the Medical Officer of Health, Ejigbo LCDA, Dr. Adewale Agosu and his colleague at Isolo LCDA, Dr. Baqiah Nojimudeen-Yesufu, decried the indifference with which residents are taking the social distancing rule as dangerous.
They noted that this may further inject more cases to the new trend of community spread announced by the Lagos State Honourable Commissioner for Health, Professor Abayomi this week.
Explaining how residents reporting symptoms are managed, Dr. Agosu said the report is followed by a visit by the epidemiologists to the residence concerned where initial tests are carried out to validate the symptoms before evacuation to the isolation centre.
Both medical officers are the secretaries of the pandemic response team set up by Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu in each local government and co-ordinate a seven – man team in each council handling contact-tracing of individuals suspected to have arrived newly from high-risk countries.
The state and local governments were commended for responding to the clamour of residents for food supplies following the unexpected lockdown by feeding thousands of residents, particularly the vulnerable and indigent.
But they also raised the need to provide health workers with personal protective equipment so that health workers involved in contact tracing or evaluating prospective persons carrying the disease are not infected.
Both toed the position of the Nigeria Medical Association on the invitation of Chinese doctors insisting that there are enough technological facilities today to transfer knowledge of the management of COVID-19 in China without having to fly into Nigeria.
They reiterated the need to increase the volume and impact of the advocacy of the do’s and don’t s to reduce transmission of the pandemic and save Nigeria the fate of countries such as the United States and United Kingdom with high mortality rates.
WATCH THE VIDEO HERE:
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=3427159553965998&id=100000159621272&sfnsn=scwspmo&extid=gxs3rBUdUdp7dpKT
