By Ahmad Umar
Gombe (Nigeria) — Gombe State Ministry of Health in northeast of the country has sensitised religious and opinion leaders in the state, on the deadly Monkey Pox disease following the outbreak in Kano, northwest Nigeria
The State Commissioner for Health, Kennedy Ishaya, who disclosed this while speaking with Journalists in Gombe on Tuesday, said the reason for using the religious and community leaders was necessary in order allay fears among the public.
Ishaya also said the government had isolated a Ward at the Specialists Hospital exclusively for the isolation of a patient, in case of an infection in the state.
“With a reported case of the Monkey Pox Disease in Kano, the Gombe State Government hoped to involve the leadership of the markets in the state, which should be on the lookout for traders from such places, so that they could report any suspected case on time”, he said.
Ishaya, said the government had since the time it heard of the outbreak of the disease, set up a machinery in place, through the State Emergency Response Team, which sat and looked into the issue and came up with a budget line of two million naira, which is usually in the budget of every year.
The Commissioner said with the information they now heard on the disease, the team would now convene a meeting, adding that the last meeting decided to separate Ward at the State Specialists Hospital that would serve as an Isolation Ward.
He stated that the State Response Team had also issued an advisory warning for the endemic states and encouraged the public to desist from self-medication but report to a healthcare facility, as soon as a patient felt the symptoms of the disease.
Dr. Ishaya said the next line of action would now be the convening of a meeting of the State Emergency Response Team and make a budget line on the type of drugs to use, as well as the antiseptics to be used and logistics, so as to provide all the materials to be used ready.
“Since the Monkey Pox is a viral infection, public should avoid places with reported case of the disease and when already there, the person should report any fever, which he called constituted signs, such as the fever itself, headache, common cold, should be reported immediately at any closest health facility,” Ishaya said.
He warned that the cold for the Monkey Pox had some associated signs, which include contact with an infected person or animal.
