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Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Dominic Ukpong has disclosed that government has taken adequate preemptive measures in the last 72 hours to checkmate any circumstances that could lead to outbreak of Coronavirus in the state, insisting that there is no cause for alarm.
Addressing journalists in Uyo yesterday, he stressed that the proactive measures were meant to contain the Coronavirus also known as Covid-19 in any emergency situation in the state following the outbreak of the scourge last week in Lagos.
According to him, with the reported case of the outbreak in Lagos, Nigeria was the third African country to record the epidemic, explaining that such measures put in place to checkmate include, contacting the major airlines operating in the state.
He also said government has been briefing the management and staff members on procedure that would be adopted in screening passengers upon arrival, meeting with the heads of Churches through the Akwa Ibom chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) to enlighten their members and the need for the public to maintain a high degree of hygiene through contacts with persons.
“The Akwa Ibom State Government has ensured that facilities including hospitals private and public have been provided with protective equipment and volunteers have been put on the alert, while a task force has been the constituted to take charge of any incident,” he said.
Ukpong further explained that isolation wards have been constructed in hospitals with an emergency operations centre at Ikot Ekpene to handle any case, adding that government in liaison with the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) in Abuja after due inspection of facilities, were satisfied with the measures the state government has so far taken.
He urged members of the public to avoid large gatherings for the time being, avoid handshakes and self-medications in the case of uneasy body challenges, adding that the symptoms include running nose, cough, sore throat and fever and that the disease has an incubation period of 14 days.
The commissioner also advised members the public to avoid bush meats, rats and bats as transmission was from animal to man, while assuring that there was no cause for alarm, emphasising on the need for personal hygiene, especially in regular washing of hands and frequent use of sanitisers.
