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From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi
The Benue State Government has disclosed that the state has recorded 383 suspected cases of Lassa fever, with 47 confirmed positive cases cumulatively since the outbreak of the disease.
The State Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Dr Paul Ogwuche, who announced this while speaking with newsmen on Tuesday in Makurdi, expressed satisfaction that there has been no new mortality from the disease in the last week despite the increase in cases.
He explained that laboratory tests carried out in the last 11 days showed that only six cases were confirmed positive out of the suspected cases reported within that period.
Ogwuche further stated that the overall mortality among health workers still stands at 14 since the outbreak of the disease in the state.
He also said that 20 patients are currently in isolation centres, with 14 at the Benue State University Teaching Hospital (BSUTH) and six at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Makurdi.
He said, “We have not recorded any mortality in the last 11 days. So far, the cumulative figure of suspected cases moved from 251 to 382, while 47 cases were confirmed cumulatively.”
The commissioner attributed the recent development to massive sensitisation and education, as well as support from partners such as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the World Health Organisation (WHO), and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).
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He said, “The rates have dropped drastically because we are out combing for suspected cases. Those that are positive are few compared to before. We have engaged in regular meetings with the WHO and the NCDC, as well as EOC.
“Surveillance is ongoing in all 23 LGAs. We do regular updates. We carry out training of health workers on basic prevention and infection in isolation centers that accounts for why they are not infected. There are 14 cases in BSUTH and six at FMC, Makurdi, in isolation.
“The pillars we put in place, sensitisation and health education, have accounted for this development. People now know what to do and what they should not do.
“The message has gone round the 23 LGAs. We are also tracking our cases very early now because the surveillance officers are in the field. For any reported positive case, we ensure that all the line contacts are monitored. Once there is a symptom, we test and take them to the isolation centre.
“So the earlier you present, the better the outcome. The low mortality shows that people are tracked in their communities and brought down for early treatment.
“There is also a lot of intervention from our partners. Many of them are on the ground. The NCDC, MSF and WHO are all working together to see how we can curtail it. The pillars of the response, infection prevention and control, are in place, and all our laboratories are functional and can detect early infection and start instituting treatment. So a lot has been done by the ministry and its partners.
“The state government has supported the response with huge sums of money, and that enabled us to a large extent to work. Everybody is on their toes doing the needful. We have not recorded any outbreak in the IDP camps. We are at the verge of distributing IEC materials (flyers) to the 15 IDP camps in the state.”
