Equip health workers, experts tell FG

Medical experts have called on the Federal Ministry of Health to equip health workers with the necessary gadgets that will enable them to manage Ebola victims.

Speaking in separate telephone interviews with our correspondent, the experts also called for the proper sensitisation of health workers on the symptoms of the viral disease

The Head of Department, Anatomic and Molecular Pathology, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Prof. Fatima Abdulkareem, said the government should provide biohazard suits for doctors and nurses who are managing such patients.

Abdulkareem said, “Government should provide the appropriate gadgets for health workers to use. They should be provided with biohazard suits so they don’t get exposed to the body fluids of infected persons. In fact, it is not just about patients that we know and even those that we do not know.

“There are so many other diseases that we don’t know about until they are diagnosed. That is why every patient with fever should be considered as a suspected case for now.”

The Vice-President of the Commonwealth Medical Association and the immediate past president of the Nigerian Medical Association, Dr. Osahon Enabulele, said it was important for health service providers and owners of private hospitals to sensitise health workers on the symptoms of the disease.

Enabulele said, “The fact remains that health workers are as exposed as other people who come in contact with the virus, and increasingly so, because they are the ones that are, most times, the first contact, especially the doctors.

“For health workers, they should also be aware of the reality of the disease and have all the facts about the Ebola virus, in terms of its nature, character and mode of transmission; the signs and symptoms; and the available treatment modalities.

“This is necessary so they can have a heightened index of suspicion, especially since they may have first contact with patients when they come in for treatment.”

Enabulele noted that it was particularly important for health workers to adhere to safety precautions, like the use of protective hand gloves, facemasks and other protective clothing as well as regular hand washing.

He advised hospital owners to decontaminate their workplace and sterilise medical equipment as soon as they are used to prevent infections.

Also, a cardiothoracic surgeon at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Dr. Akin Ogunrombi, said it was essential that health workers be continuously sensitised and every patient be treated as a potential Ebola-infected patient.

He said, “All the precautions, like hand gloving, wearing of masks, and other personal protective equipment, unfortunately, are not available. We need to use the basic things that we have, like washing our hands often and even wearing the white coat.”

(PUNCH)