The Benue State Commissioner for Health
and Human Resources, Dr. Cecilia Ojabo, has said the two pregnant women
and another person, who died of Lassa fever on Thursday, have been
buried.
Ojabo told SUNDAY PUNCH that the victims were buried in their hometown, Adoka, in the Otukpo Local Government Area of the state
The deceased, according to the
commissioner, were wrapped in sealed cellophane bags before they were
put in their graves. According to her, relatives of the victims were
given specific instructions not to open the sealed bags for whatever
reason.
The commissioner said, “The health
personnel were also on the ground to protect the environment against
infection and to prevent anybody from tampering with the corpses even
after burial.
“A team from the state’s Ministry of
Health has also been constantly visiting the homes of the deceased in
order to place their relatives who had contact with them before their
demise, under observation.”
Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Health
in Edo State, Dr. David Osifo, has said it is collaborating with
authorities of the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital to curtail the
spread of Lassa fever.
He explained that the state government,
as part of the collaboration, had purchased two additional dialysis
machines and other relevant medical equipment for use in the hospital.
Osifo noted that 45 persons, who were
infected with the disease in the state, were currently receiving
treatment at the hospital while their contact persons, were also placed
under surveillance.
The commissioner blamed the casualty
figure on inadequate facilities to manage the high number of patients
who were undergoing treatment in the hospital.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Osun
State branch of the Nigeria Medical Association, Dr. Tokunbo Olajumoke,
said about 20 people, who had contact with a patient killed by Lassa
fever virus at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital,
Ile-Ife, had been placed under watch to see whether they would develop
symptoms of the virus.
Olajumoke also said about 20 other
people, who had contact with the same patient when he was in Ondo State,
were also being monitored.
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