COVID-19 Surge: Nigerian Health Workers Demand Travel Restriction
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Nigeria News
Disturbed by the resurgence of COVID-19 in China, medical bodies
in the country have expressed worry about the Federal Government’s refusal to
place travel restrictions on inbound passengers from China in the country.
According to them, Nigeria does not have adequate human resources
to handle another pandemic as a result of the massive emigration of health
workers to other countries.
READ: Lagos Govt Warns Residents Against Second Wave of Covid-19
There is a resurgence of COVID-19 in China following the relaxation of the
country’s zero-COVID policy, as well as significantly increased COVID-19
cases, admissions, and deaths in the United Kingdom and the United States of
America over the past weeks driven partly by the usual winter exacerbation of
respiratory illnesses.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and
Prevention has maintained that country-targeted travel restrictions including
requests for PCR-negative tests from incoming travelers had little or no
effect on preventing global and national circulation of omicron since the
emergence of this variant and its relatives with their shorter incubation
period.
he President of the National Association of Resident
Doctors, Dr Emeka Orji, told The PUNCH that the government should make plans
to protect its citizens from a resurgence of COVID-19.
READ: Covid-19: Niger State Plans Mass Testing as Three Commissioners Test Positive
Orji said, “We need to act now because we don’t even have enough doctors
to handle the current challenges we have in the health sector.
“If
we now have a major pandemic, it will only worsen the situation because what
we have at hand now, we don’t even have enough medical personnel to take care
of them and that is why you have an increase in waiting time in the hospital
and rescheduling of surgeries.”
Also, the President of the Academy
of Medicine Specialties of Nigeria, Prof Oladapo Ashiru, said the country must
act fast to prevent another pandemic.
READ: School Reopening: Nigerian Government Threatens Fresh Lockdown if...
“Anybody coming from China must come with a negative COVID-19 test, they
must be screened and they must guard their contacts and maintain vigilance and
after they come with a negative test, they must repeat the test after a week.
If we don’t do that, we are going to be in a problem,” he said.
The
President of the Association of Nigerian Private Medical Practitioners, Dr
Kayode Adesola, also urged the government to restrict travelers from China to
avoid a resurgence in the country.
“Prevention is better than cure
and that is the more reason the government needs to act on preventing any case
from China.
READ: Lagos State Govt Approves Reopening of Markets
They should not think of whatever they gain from China but think of the
ultimate thing, which is life,” he said.
On his part, the Chairman
of the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, Lagos State
Council, Olurotimi Awojide, said nurses were concerned that the government is
yet to impose restrictions on travelers from China.
“The
government should be proactive and not wait until we have cases before placing
restrictions.
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