Paul Osuyi, Asaba
The Delta State Government has announced its partnership with the Nigeria Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) in the prevention of new and re-emerging diseases in the state.
The partnership, according to the state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Nicholas Azinge, is for the early diagnoses and research on infectious diseases.
Dr. Azinge made this known in Asaba at the one-day training on Monkey pox disease organised for health care workers in the state.
A total of 135 medical workers drawn from 64 government hospitals, Delta State University Teaching Hospital (DELSUTH), Oghara and Fedral Medical Centre (FMC), participated in the training.
Represented by the Director, Public Health, State Ministry of Health, Dr. (Mrs.) Philomena Okeowo, Dr. Azinge said with the establishment of NIMR sub-station in the state which covers the states in the South-South geo-political zone, the state is leveraging on the institute’s available skilled human resource and infrastructure to enable it address issues of infectious diseases.
According to him, the objectives of the training include the sensitization of health care workers on the prevention and control of monkey pox disease and other infectious disease, and how to care for suspected cases.
He revealed that the training will keep the participants abreast on how to contain infectious diseases as they emerge, carry out outbreak investigations, know the due processes as regards the flow of report rendering, specimen collection amongst others.
Dr. Azinge revealed that no death has been recorded so far, adding that government has made provisions for the free treatment of detected cases (patients) of monkey pox disease be it in public or private health facilities.
He said the administration of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has supported all diseases outbreak intervention in the state through the procurements and prepositioning of outbreak management materials for the detection and management of the disease, provision of logistics for border patrols for early detection through migration or displacement of people from neigbouring sates.
Other measures aimed at addressing the disease by government, he said, include the activation of the State Rapid Response Team, sensitization/mobilization of Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers (DNSOs) in all the 25 local government areas of the state in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) amongst others.