The Ogun State Government has stepped up illness surveillance and emergency preparedness following the Federal Government’s announcement of an Ebola outbreak within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), assuring residents that no case had been detected within the state as of 21 October, 2026.
The authorities urged residents to stay alert, adhere to preventive measures and chorus from spreading unverified stories that would trigger pointless panic.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr Tomi Coker, disclosed this in an announcement on Wednesday, saying the state had heightened its stage of preparedness since Ebola was declared within the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in March 2026.
Coker mentioned 111 individuals of curiosity, together with passengers arriving from high-risk international locations, had been recognized and monitored. She added that they have been subsequently launched from follow-up after finishing the stipulated surveillance interval.
According to the commissioner, the state’s Public Health Emergency Operations Centre was coordinating preparedness and response efforts to facilitate the early detection, reporting and administration of any suspected case.
She mentioned the federal government had additionally skilled Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers, port well being officers, well being educators, clinicians and group informants to enhance their capability to reply appropriately to potential instances.
Coker added that nationwide tips, response protocols and different related supplies had been tailored for implementation within the state, whereas public consciousness campaigns and an infection prevention and management measures in healthcare services had been strengthened.
She suggested residents to depend on official public well being channels for correct info and keep away from panic.
The commissioner defined that Ebola is a extreme illness that may result in severe sickness and demise, including that its preliminary signs could possibly be mistaken for these of different widespread diseases.
She recognized the signs as fever, extreme weak spot, fatigue, headache, muscle ache, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhoea and stomach ache. She famous that unexplained bleeding or bruising may additionally happen in some instances.
According to Coker, signs might seem between two and 21 days after publicity to the virus. However, she clarified that having these signs doesn’t essentially point out Ebola, though anybody who might have been uncovered or travelled to a high-risk space ought to search immediate skilled evaluation.
She mentioned the illness may unfold via direct contact with the blood or physique fluids of an contaminated one who had developed signs, the physique of an individual who had died from Ebola, or objects contaminated with contaminated bodily fluids.
To scale back the danger of an infection, Coker urged residents to scrub their palms steadily with cleaning soap and working water, utilizing alcohol-based hand sanitiser when these have been unavailable.
She additionally warned in opposition to contact with the blood or physique fluids of anybody suspected of getting Ebola and sharing needles, razors or different objects that could possibly be contaminated.
The commissioner suggested anybody who suspected they’d been uncovered to the virus to contact public well being authorities instantly somewhat than anticipate signs to seem.
She additional urged anybody who developed signs following attainable publicity to restrict contact with different individuals and notify public well being authorities earlier than visiting a healthcare facility, permitting preparations to be made for secure referral to an acceptable medical centre.
Coker referred to as on residents to cooperate with surveillance and follow-up groups, present truthful info when contacted by public well being officers and cling to all preventive steering.
She cautioned in opposition to touching the our bodies of people that died from suspected or confirmed Ebola, emphasising that skilled groups should perform secure and dignified burials.
The commissioner additionally urged the general public to reject rumours, discrimination and stigmatisation, stressing the significance of sharing solely info obtained from verified public well being sources.
She mentioned the state authorities would proceed collaborating with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and different related companions to watch the state of affairs and implement measures to safeguard public well being.
Coker urged healthcare employees in each private and non-private services to stay alert to attainable instances, determine and isolate suspected sufferers promptly, keep strict an infection prevention and management practices, and instantly report suspected instances to the state surveillance staff via Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers of their respective native authorities areas.
She supplied the State Epidemiologist’s contact quantity as 08084250881 and the NCDC toll-free line as 6232 for reporting suspected instances and searching for public well being recommendation.
The commissioner careworn that early detection, immediate reporting and collective motion by residents, healthcare professionals and public well being authorities have been essential to stopping the unfold of Ebola.
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