The Federal Government on Thursday warned medical facilities in the country to obtain approval before treating any confirmed coronavirus case.
“We therefore appeal strongly to operators of private medical facilities wishing to continue to treat COVID-19 cases to apply to the Federal Ministry of Health urgently, for accreditation, said Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and Chairman of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha.
“The PTF views with some measure of concern the non-compliance by private medical facilities with the directive to seek accreditation before treating COVID-19 related cases. The highly infectious nature of COVID-19 if not well managed in purpose-built facilities and specialists, pose a lot of danger not just to the medical staff in such hospitals but also to other patients and loved ones at home.
The SGF also said that the task force is taking drastic measures to ensure that Kano State does not become the new epicenter of the Novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the country.
Kano currently has 73 cases out of the 873 people infected in the country.
To this end, the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC) has already redeployed at least, 17 persons, including seven from the World Health Organisation (WHO) to Kano to deal with current issues that have arisen.
The federal government said additional laboratory equipment have also been sent to Kano but noted that that the laboratory in the state, at the moment, is closed for the next few days while fumigation and disinfection is ongoing.
According to the SGF: “The situation in Kano is still being assessed and monitored closely. Based on preliminary findings, the PTF has directed the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to send an enhanced support team, mobilize resources for contact tracing and immediately ensure that necessary steps are taken in conjunction with state government to contain the spread of the pandemic in Kano and stop the city from becoming the next epicentre.
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