Dr AMINA MOHAMMED BALONI, the Commissioner for Health, explains how Kaduna State has been up in arms against Coronavirus, in its efforts to contain the spread of the pandemic, in this interview below
What measures did Kaduna State put in place when the index case of COVID-19 was recorded in Nigeria last February?
Kaduna State Government took measures against the spread of COVID-19 even before we got our index case. A day after the first case was reported in Lagos State, that was on the 27th February, we set up the Emergency Operations Committee(EOC) , which I chair. Essentially, EOC coordinates the planning and implementation of the response against the disease. Also, we immediately reactivated the Infectious Disease Control Center(IDCC), put ventilators and other necessary equipment in it, trained and posted staff to the center in readiness for Coronavirus.
In addition, we set up several sub-committees such as Coordination, Surveillance, Laboratory, Risk Communication, Infection Prevention and Control and Case Management sub-committees, to lead the responses planning. We also started a massive mobilisation campaign on radio, television and social media. We also distributed posters and pamphlets to sensitize the populace on the prevention of COVID-19. So, by the time we got the case, we were ready . Since then, we have been planning continuously on how to contain the disease.
We have also collaborated with Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH), Zaria, 44 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital Kaduna, Air Force Base Hospital Kaduna and Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital Kaduna for additional isolation facilities and critical care with Intensive Care Units . We have also identified an alternative isolation center where patients with mild cases will be managed. It’s a 69 room facility located within Kaduna .
Is the government reaching out to Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), to set up a testing center in Kaduna State, like the one in Kano State?
We have identified up to three labs where possible testing can be done; one at Ahmadu Bello University(ABU) Zaria, the other at Yusuf Dantsoho General Hospital , Tudun Wada, Kaduna and a private lab in Kaduna. We are working collaboratively to ensure one or all of them are validated. We have reached out to NCDC and a validation team has been in the state to carry this out and we are hopeful that testing will start in Kaduna this week.
Reports suggest that the government is trying to set up one or two testing centres on its own, to compliment that of NCDC. How correct is this information?
Yes. But such testing centers in the state are not owned by NCDC, they are to ensure that the proposed testing centres are validated and certified to be able to test COVID-19 cases. From our efforts , we have identified up to three labs which can be so accredited as I mentioned earlier.
Is there any case of community transmission in the six cases so far recorded in the state?
No, we have no evidence of community transmission but we must continue to observe the measures that are in place; hand washing with soap and running water or alcohol-based sanitizer, observance of respiratory hygiene and social distancing as well as not congregating in groups, by adhering strictly to the stay-at-home directive issued by government.
There are conflicting claims about the mode of the transmission of COVID-19. Is Coronavirus also an airborne disease?
The disease can spread from person to person through small droplets, which come out from the nose or mouth, when a person with COVID-19 coughs, sneezes or even exhales. These droplets land on objects and surfaces. Other people can then contract COVID-19 when they touch these objects or surfaces and subsequently touch their eyes, nose or mouth. People can also get COVID-19 if they breathe in droplets from a person with Coronavirus , who coughs out, sneezes or exhales these droplets. This is why it is important for people to observe social distancing, by keeping a safe distance of at least two meters between each other.
Medical workers have been complaining of insufficient Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). What’s the government doing about it, seeing that they are in the frontlines in the battle against the pandemic?
At the moment, we have enough PPEs to care for our patients. We are doing our best to acquire Personal Protective Equipment, we have also received donations from NCDC and some corporate bodies and we are still sourcing for more . As you know, there is a global shortage. We are also collaborating with Defence Industries Corporation Of Nigeria (DICON), which has developed a prototype PPE that is being tested to find out if they are effective. DICON is also working on a prototype ventilator which will help in making the equipment readily available in Nigeria. The PPEs are required for those health workers working directly with positive patients but we are acquiring more surgical masks and gloves which can be used by health workers who are in the hospitals.
Medical experts say that there’s no cure for COVID-19 but people who have tested positive become negative after some time. Is it then correct to say that positive patients who become negative have not been cured per se?
Positive patients who later test negative are considered cured.
Can a positive patient who eventually becomes negative have a relapse?
So far, we do not have a case of relapse; a patient becomes cured after the infection and it confers immunity on him. But studies are ongoing, there have been reports of a few people having another infection after cure but this has not been authenticated.
Is it correct to assume that 14 days after the first index case was recorded in Kaduna State, the worst would have been over, especially if there is no massive outbreak afterwards?
As you know there have been several more cases after the first case and each had different contacts. We have to follow up each contact for 14 days each and monitor for symptoms, which if none of them exhibits or tests positive and there are no new imported cases, then we can say that we have no infection. This is why the lock down is so important; unless we break the transmission by these measures , we will not be free of the disease.
The Kaduna Task Force on COVID-19 and EOC meet every day. What’s the difference between the two? Some people are saying that one is a duplication of the other. How true is this perception?
State Task Force on COVID-19 is multi-sectoral. It is being chaired by the Deputy Governor. The Secretary to the State Government , Commissioner of Finance , myself, the Chief of Staff , Attorney General and the Senior Adviser Counsellor are members. Other members are Commissioner of Human Services and Social Development, the Special Assistant on Media, Commissioner of Public Works and Infrastructure, Commissioner of Housing and Urban Development, Commissioner of Local Government and the Commissioner of Internal Security and Home Affairs. The Deputy Speaker coordinates the wider government COVID response , including security and other measures. On the other hand, EOC is the technical team for the COVID-19 health response. It includes technical experts, development partners, health workers’ representatives, Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Agency. They are responsible for implementing the response to the disease.
When will government lift the lockdown?
The lock down was instituted to minimise the spread of COVID-19 from other places into Kaduna State. It is a Public Health measure to break transmission, this in conjunction with ban on congregations , reinforced social distancing by encouraging people to stay home, maintain at least two metres between people, hands washing with soap and running water, observing respiratory hygiene. All these are designed to stop person-to-person spread. This will be reviewed when government is satisfied that the desired result has been achieved.
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