Nigeria at risk as Ebola returns in Liberia

Against the background of new recorded cases of the dreaded Ebola Virus Disease (EVB) in Sierra Leone and Liberia, public health experts in Nigeria have called for added vigilance at the border posts in order to prevent a recurrence of the disease in the country.

Also, there is a need for the Federal Government to strengthen the precautionary and screening methods in order to forestall a return of the disease.

Dr. Oladoyin Odubanjo, a member of the Ebola Prevention Committee in Nigeria, noted that proper screening of passengers for the viral disease was a major precautionary measure to prevent a similar scenario whereby a Liberian-American diplomat, Patrick Sawyer, imported the disease into Nigeria in 2014.

He said, “We must watch out and learn from our neighbours. Liberia and Sierra Leone reportedly free of EVD are at present recording new cases. We must act now because we have abandoned the strict measures we put in place at the height of the outbreak. Nigeria must know that we cannot let our guards down until every single case of EVD in West Africa is over.”

Another public health physician, Dr. Segun Agbaje, urged the authorities to be on watch out for symptoms of the disease.

Read Also: Ebola makes comeback in Sierra Leone

He said, “The country’s health authorities need to be on the alert and take regular precautionary measures to avoid an outbreak. We had an outbreak in the first place because we did not act on time. The new cases are the red flag, signifying that it is not yet over for Nigeria and the world.”

Agbaje also stressed the need for hand washing and other hygienic practices, stating that they were key to getting rid of germs, bacteria and other viruses.

According to him, hand-washing practice particularly reduces the risk of getting infections by more than 60 per cent.

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