The Commissioner of Health in Anambra state, Dr. Vincent Okpala, has revealed that 29 persons including healthcare givers, relatives and business partners of the COVID-19 index in the state have been quarantined and are waiting to be tested.
The Commissioner, who spoke on the development on Tuesday, said the COVID-19 response team in the State searched for the index case’s contacts from 8:00pm to 3:00am after the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) contacted the State Government to notify them of the confirmed case in Anambra.
“I went with the team to places I ordinarily would not go at that time of the night, and I knocked at a lot of doors to wake people up from sleep to ask about the individuals.
“He left the hospital when he should not have left. Usually, while waiting for patient’s result, we keep them in check, but this man eloped even before the result was out, and when I called the doctor managing him, and he told me the man was not in the hospital, we had to go looking for him.
“We searched for him and got him. Presently, the index case is being treated at an isolation centre, and he is receiving the best of treatment ever. He has every facility he needs and is also provided whatever he wants.
“Contact tracing is on vigorously, and we have 29 persons who had contacts with the index case. They include medical personnel at the hospital where he was previously managed, his relatives and business associates. Those traced are being closely monitored now, as I speak”, Dr. Okpala said.
