Lagos begins training of 342 indigenous medical workers

Chinese officials confirm virus is airborne

By  Sola Ogundipe & Olasunkanmi Akoni

coronavirus ((2019-nCoV) continues to spread in China and across the world, Nigeria has beefed up its preparedness and response efforts. Currently, there are three laboratories with the capacity to test for the novel coronavirus in the country.

The laboratories are the Nigeria Centre for Diseases Control, NCDC, National Reference Lab, Abuja, in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT; the  Virology Laboratory at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, in Lagos, and Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Edo State.

Disclosing the development, the Director-General of the NCDC, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu noted the strong collaboration and support from partners to establish and validate the capacity to test for the 2019nCoV at the NCDC National Reference Lab.

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His words: “Our preparedness for the novel coronavirus is multifaceted. We now have three labs in Nigeria that can test for the 2019-nCoV.

“In addition to the NCDC National Reference Lab, we are pleased to announce that the capacity to test for the 2019nCoV has also been established in two more molecular labs in the NCDC network; the Virology Laboratory of the Lagos University University Hospital, LUTH, and Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Edo State. Further, Ihekweazu said:

“We have used various platforms to communicate with the public and health workers on protective measures for the 2019-nCoV. We’re grateful for the strong collaboration and support from our partners to establish and validate the capacity to test for the 2019nCoV at the NCDC National Reference Lab.

The establishment of this capacity has been supported by  Public Health England, Robert Koch Institute, WHO Nigeria, Africa CDC, and  Bernhard-Nocht-Institut fur Tropenmedizin.

Lagos begins training of 342 indigenous medical workers

The Lagos State Government has begun training of 342 medical personnel as first-level emergency responders for communicable diseases in the 20 Local Governments Areas and 37 Local Council Development Areas of the state.

Director-General, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu disclosed this on Monday in Alausa, Ikeja.

Oke-Osanyintolu said the training was a component of collaborative efforts with the Ministry of Health to contain the spread and possibility of entry into Nigeria of communicable diseases such as Coronavirus, Lassa fever, and others.

His words: “Following a directive issued by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, our team has immediately begun a monitoring visit to all councils to ascertain the level of preparedness of all the hospitals and other healthcare facilities in the state.

“Rarely, animal coronaviruses can infect people and then spread between people such as with MERS, SARS and now with Coronavirus (2019-nCoV). Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic illness caused by Lassa virus, a member of the arenavirus family of viruses.

“Humans usually become infected with Lassa virus through exposure to food or household items contaminated with urine or faeces of infected Mastomys rats.

The WHO says Lassa fever outbreak is a yearly occurrence during the dry season in Nigeria, but this year’s outbreak is more widespread with 10 states, 140 suspected and 30 confirmed cases.”

Coronavirus is airborne

Meanwhile, the deadly coronavirus has reportedly gone airborne. According to the China Daily, the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau Deputy Head, Zeng QunA was quoted that the virus can now spread via aerosol transmission – meaning it can drift through the air for an extended period of time and cause infection if breathed in.

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“Aerosol transmission refers to the mixing of the virus with droplets in the air to form aerosols that cause infection after inhalation.

“As such we have called on the public to raise their awareness of the prevention and control of the disease,” Zeng Qun was quoted as saying.

This discovery means coronavirus now has three modes of transmission- airborne, direct transmission when a person breathes the air close to an infected person who has coughed or sneezed; contact transmission a person touches a contaminated surface then infects themselves by touching their mouth, eyes or nose.

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