The World Health Organization (WHO) says Nigeria’s index Ebola patient was evacuated to Switzerland because she is a Swiss citizen and had stabilised.
Mohamed Janabi, WHO regional director for Africa, in a post
on his X handle on Monday, said the patient was clinically stable after being
successfully managed by healthcare workers in Nigeria.
The patient and her husband, who is also a Swiss citizen,
were evacuated to Switzerland early Monday morning aboard a medical evacuation
aircraft.
She was airlifted from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International
Airport in Abuja at about 6am.
Janabi said Switzerland would assume responsibility for the
patient’s continued medical management and the monitoring of her husband, who
is contact number 53.
Nigeria, meanwhile, will continue monitoring 52 contacts
linked to the confirmed case.
The WHO official said Nigeria currently has no Ebola cases
following the evacuation.
“Earlier this morning, the Ebola patient in Nigeria and her
contact, who is also her husband, were medically evacuated to Switzerland,”
Janabi said.
“The reasons for the evacuation are: Both the patient and
her husband are Swiss citizens. The patient is clinically stable. The Nigerian
medical team successfully managed her through the acute phase of the illness
and stabilized her condition.”
He congratulated the Nigerian government, health workers,
clinicians, emergency responders and other partners involved in the response,
describing the development as a demonstration of African expertise, resilience
and leadership in public health.
He noted that vigilance remains critical as Nigeria
continues contact tracing and surveillance to prevent further transmission.
Muhammad Ali Pate, coordinating minister of health and
social welfare, had said the patient’s improvement did not mean she was no
longer infectious, adding that strict public health protocols remain in place.
Pate said further updates would be provided after the
patient and her husband arrive safely at their destination.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com