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corona NNDCThe acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Prof. Kemebradikumo Pondei, has promised that the agency will provide ventilators and oxygen as part of its contribution to the fight against coronavirus.

He said they would intervene to protect the people of  Niger Delta from the dreaded disease. Speaking at the NDDC headquarters in Port Harcourt on Tuesday, Pondei said as an interventionist agency, the commission would collaborate with other stakeholders in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

covid 19 pharmThe Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria ACPN, has called on infected Nigerians to desist from indiscriminate consumption of chloroquine as a measure to cure dreaded Corona virus as suggested by US president, Donald Trump.

In statement, ACPN, national chairman, Dr. Samuel Adekola stated: ” ….We find it necessary to caution Nigerians against the indiscriminate and excessive consumption of chloroquine and similar medicines in the quest to obviously prevent COVID -19. “Bodies like FDA and NAFDAC have only approved the use of chloroquine in the clinical trials

UBA donatesThe United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) has announced a donation of over N5billion (USD14 million), through the UBA Foundation, to catalyse a comprehensive pan-African response to the fight against the coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic.

According to a statement signed by Ramon Nasir, Head, External and Media Relations of the bank, “The donation will provide significant and much needed support to Nigeria and 19 other African countries, by supplying relief materials, critical care facilities, and financial support to governments.” The breakdown of the donation shows that the Lagos State Government will get N1 billion; the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja will receive N500 million, while N1billion will be shared among the remaining 35 states in the country.

uch shuts downThe University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan has reversed its earlier decision to keep the hospital open following reports of suspected cases of COVID-19 among some of its medical doctors. A report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) indicated that the outpatients (OPD) clinics including Medicine, Surgery and Children Out Patients Departments of the hospital have been shut down.

It was, however, observed that the hospital’s accident and emergency departments were open and healthcare workers, including doctors and nurses were sighted rendering services. Its main Pharmacy Department was open, but rendering only skeletal services to patients with prescriptions, just as workers on essential duty were also cleaning

former healthThe former Commissioner for Health, Kwara State, and Publisher of Healthcare Magazine, Dr. Bola Olaosebikan has called on federal and state governments to adopt innovation, technology and financing as tools to improving healthcare delivery and accessibility across Nigeria.

He said this at the 34th Anniversary of Healthcare Magazine held at the Sheraton Hotels Ikeja, theme, ‘Improving Health with Innovations, Technology and Sustainable Financing’. He said: “This is not the time to build big hospitals. What we need is innovations, technology and financing. We want small technology that will bring a big result. With innovation, we can prevent many diseases and improve healthcare delivery.”

updated six covidThe Special Assistant to the Lagos State Governor on Health, Dr Tunde Ajayi, has disclosed that six of the patients at the Infectious Disease Hospital have recovered. Ajayi via his twitter handle, @thetundeajai, said the patients would be discharged soon.

“Six of our #COVID19 inpatients have recovered and will be discharged soon. There is something Lagos is doing right. Lagos takes the lead,” he wrote. According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, 51 cases were confirmed in the country as of 11:25 pm on March 25.

covid nmaThe Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, on Thursday, decried what it described as ‘ absence’ of purposely-built isolation centers across the country unlike in the past where Infectious Diseases Hospitals existed in every state of the Federation. The NMA also pointed out that certain key strategies have been largely absent or sub-optimally implemented in the ongoing efforts to contain the spread of COVVID19.

Making these points in a press statement made available to Vanguard and signed by the President of the NMA, Dr. Francis Faduyile said the severe inadequacy of critical care facilities like purposely-built Care Units (ICU), in Nigerian hospitals, is making matters worse in the containment efforts. According to him, ICUs with Ventilators/artificial respirators make the difference between life and death in complications from Covid-19. “It is scary that the dearth of these facilities is the same in all the 36 States and the FCT.

riversRivers State has recorded its first case of Covid-19, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 51, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has said. Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, Director General of NCDC, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN), on Thursday in Abuja, while giving an update on the COVID-19 infections. 

Ihekweazu said NCDC on Wednesday reported five new cases of coronavirus, with two cases each in Abuja and Lagos, and one in Rivers. The NCDC said out of the five new cases, three are returning travellers into Nigeria and two are close contacts of a confirmed

nafdac ordersThe Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, on Monday, ordered manufacturing of chloroquine for emergency stock for possible clinical trial treatment of coronavirus. The NAFDAC boss in a statement, said the anti-malaria drug was reported to function as anti-viral at both the entry and post-entry stages of 2019-nCoV infection.

She added that chloroquine had also been reported as potential broad spectrum anti-viral drug. She noted that Lagos would begin clinical trial of the drug to evaluate its effectiveness, while calling on the public to desist from its use without the guidance of a medical doctor or clinician for cases of clinical trial treatment of COVID-19.

covid 19 and health sectorDespite several reports and commentaries drawing the attention of our duty bearers to the decay in the health sector before the current virus pandemic, no attention was paid, after all.

And now the consequences of executive negligence are here with all of us. Some of the pre-COVID-19 editorials and headlines include: ‘‘Equip Nigerian hospitals like UK’s, ‘‘That Buhari may finish ‘healthy’,” ‘‘Nigeria’s healthcare system under threat,’’ NMA’s five-year plan for health sector’’ ‘‘FG and another health sector plan,’’ ‘‘Healthcare, boy Ali and our conscience!,’’ ‘‘NMA and unbridled doctors’’ exodus,’’

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