The Federal government on Thursday in Abuja inaugurated the Lassa Fever Rapid Response Committee to prevent and control the disease, which has spread to 12 states, killing 40 people.
The 23-member committee with
representatives from government agencies and development partners was
inaugurated by the Minister of State for Health, Dr. Muhammad Pate.
Prof. Sunday Omilabu of the Lagos
University Teaching Hospital is the Chairman while Dr. Henry Akpan of
the Federal Ministry of Health will serve Secretary.
Cases of Lassa fever have been reported in
Borno, Gombe, Yobe, Taraba, Plateau, Nassarawa, Ebonyi. Edo, Ondo,
Rivers, Anambra and Lagos states.
According to Pate the Federal government is
concerned about the danger of Lassa fever in Nigeria, adding that the
government set up the National Lassa Fever Stakeholders’ Forum in 2007
to take action against the disease.
He said, “It is our resolve to do
everything possible not only to control Lassa fever epidemic but to put
in place mechanism for it effective prevention. It is in the light of
this National Lassa Fever Rapid Response that the committee is being
inaugurated.”
The minister stated that the committee
would provide technical expertise towards curtailing the outbreak and
come up with standard treatment protocol and guidelines for management
of the disease.
Other assignments of the committee are the
development of standard operating procedures on infection control in
hospitals, mobilising resources for its prevention and control and
coordinating intervention activities on prevention and control of the
disease.
Govt should please enlighten the masses on this deadly issue, Federal Govt should take bull by the horn and stop this toothless bull-dog approach to this life threatening issue. How could they be mapping out strategy on how to control since 2007 they detected it.
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