The Federal Government on Wednesday said a total of 198 persons are currently being
quarantined for the Ebola Virus Disease.
It said while 177 are being quarantined in Lagos where the index case was reported, 21 persons are being attended to in Enugu.
Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents of the outcome of the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by President Goodluck Jonathan.
Maku said Enugu came into the picture because none of the nurses that treated the American- Liberian, Patrick Sawyer, who brought the virus to the country disobeyed medical advice and travelled to Enugu.
He said all those the nurse had contacts with, including her husband, are currently being
quarantined.
The minister said, "All those who had primary contacts have been quarantined. Secondary contacts have also been traced.
"So far, the number of people that have been traced is 198. Out of this number, 177 are in Lagos. Some are in quarantine, some are being
monitored by health specialists. "21 persons in Enugu are also being watched.
This is because one of the nurses that was involved with the treatment of the index case, unfortunately, disobeyed medical instructions and
somehow travelled to Enugu.
"All those who she was in contact with including her husband are under quarantine. The medical team have been to traced all those who made contact with her.
"Health workers are now in all our border units. All the entry points into this country and exit points, we have port health workers that are
working in our airports and seaports.
"We are calling on citizens specifically to cooperate. If health workers say you have had contact with A,B,C, don't move to anywhere,
respect that judgement. It is very important.
"In one or two cases where we have had disobedience, we lost one of them and this one now moved with it to another place (Enugu). So we are urging Nigerians, please to help us in making sure that all these messages and appeals we are making on you, we implement them."
He said all those being watched had contact with Sawyer and handled his case as no other person outside this contacted the virus.
Maku said contrary to some media reports (THE PUNCH not included), no case of the virus has been reported in Abuja.
He urged media practitioners to get their information right before publishing.
He said the Minister of Health was the only person that could confirm any new case of the virus.
Maku also denied another media reports that some Indian doctors were being forced to treat Ebola virus victims in Abuja.
"We did not force any doctor to treat Ebora virus patient. As a matter of fact, there are no Ebola patients in Abuja. The report did not mention the names of the Indian doctors or the affected hospitals," he said.
He urged Nigerians not to panic as the best measures in the world had already been put in place to stop the spread.
Source: ThePunch
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