The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Mohammad Ali Pate, has said Nigeria confirmed its first reported case of Bundibugyo Ebola virus within 24 hours of testing, adding that all 44 identified hospital contacts have been reached, assessed and placed under isolation as part of efforts to prevent further transmission.
He said this in an exclusive interview with Arise News on Wednesday, where he explained that the rapid confirmation enabled health authorities to notify the World Health Organisation (WHO), activate contact tracing and commence containment measures, while assuring Nigerians that the patient’s condition was improving under supportive medical care.
“When this case transpired, within 24 hours we were able to confirm it, we were able to notify the World Health Organization as required by the international health regulations, which is the governance law for such.
“Yes, the person is an individual, a patient, regardless of where they come from, they are resident in Nigeria with their spouse. They are in the diplomatic community, but they are in the territory of Nigeria. So as a human case, from public health perspective, whoever it is, regardless of where they are coming from, we deal with it properly.
“And I think that’s really important to emphasize that we’ve identified that and we’ve identified the contacts of that case.
“In terms of the clinical situation of the patient, thankfully, the quality of care that she is receiving in a hospital in Nigeria has brought us to where she is stable. In fact, the latest report is that she is improving. She deteriorated, but she’s getting better. If that continues, she could be one of those survivors, and that gives hope that in fact, with proper treatment, with good diagnosis, with supportive medical care, individuals can survive this potentially deadly virus,” he told Arise News.
The minister added that Nigeria’s public and private healthcare facilities, trained health professionals and laboratory capacity had contributed to the detection and treatment of the case, stressing that public cooperation and compliance with isolation measures were essential to preventing further transmission.
“As a country, we’ve invested in the healthcare system in public, but also we’ve got good private facilities. We’ve got health professionals who know what they’re doing. We’ve got laboratory capacity that has all come together to allow the patient to walk through the Nigerian healthcare system, be detected, and be cared for. From a public health perspective, we’ve also stepped up quickly with multiple public health experts and epidemiologists to be able to track. That effort is very much underway.
“But it goes beyond the public health system. It also requires Nigerians themselves in how we behave, so that those who may have contact with her continue to comply.”
Speaking on the delay in diagnosis, Pate said the patient was initially treated for malaria before further symptoms prompted testing, with authorities confirming the infection within 24 hours of receiving her samples.
“The private facility which she represented with fever initially thought it was malaria and treated her as such. Now, when she came back with symptoms that were suggestive of viral hepatitis, with other enzymes increasing, the clinical acumen triggered them to consider and look for tests. We were able to get that locally, and to do that within 24 hours, confirm and report it, and to activate what is key, the containment strategy, which is where we are.
“The fact that we have that confirmation within 24 hours, and we’re able to transparently notify the custodian of the International Health Regulation, World Health Organization, and be able to initiate contact tracing and containment of this virus is key.”
Highlighting the containment measures, Pate said all 44 hospital contacts had been identified, assessed and isolated, with no symptoms reported so far. He added that the patient’s spouse and two domestic staff had also been instructed to isolate as surveillance continues.
“The 44 contacts were contacts in the hospital where she was admitted, all across the spectrum. All have been identified, they have been contacted, risk assessment has been conducted, they have been isolated, and we do not yet have information that they have any symptoms. But we will continue to track that so that if any develop symptoms, then we repeat the process of their own contacts as well.
“In addition, her spouse and two domestic staff have been identified and they have also been asked to isolate. That is the proper public health procedure. We are fortunate, we have competent public health authorities and we have other entities of government that are actively participating in protecting our health security as a country.”
Addressing concerns over airport screening, Pate said more than 42,000 travellers had entered Nigeria through its airports in five months, with health declarations and risk assessments conducted in line with WHO guidelines. He added that the patient was asymptomatic on arrival, making transmission during travel highly unlikely.
“All travelers, first of all, in the last five months, more than 42,000 travelers entered through our airports. But half of them through Abuja and Lagos, a large number actually went through Lagos as well. All those travelers have health declarations that they have conducted or at the point of entry according to the guidelines of World Health Organization. There’s a risk assessment of every entrant, which is determined by the risk of transmission across border. Those have been complied.
“She was asymptomatic, which meant that the transmission is highly unlikely within the context of her travel. What was most important was that she developed symptoms and may have exposed others since she developed those symptoms.
“The surveillance system that we have is strong, and we’ve had it for the last five months, and we’ll continue to double down on it, just as we also want to protect others from getting infectious diseases that might come out of our country as well.”
Pate urged Nigerians who have had close contact with people from Ebola-affected areas and develop symptoms such as fever, muscle aches, diarrhoea or headaches to contact public health authorities and isolate themselves. He advised regular handwashing, avoiding crowded places and relying on trusted health agencies for information, warning against panic and misinformation.
“Close contact of folks who have traveled to areas where there’s this outbreak, the high-risk areas, DRC, and other countries, which is constantly evolving based on WHO guidance, plus symptoms suggestive of such viral illness, fever, muscle aches, diarrhea, headaches. Those symptoms should be taken very seriously. They should be reported to public health authorities, and those contacts should isolate themselves from their families, from their neighbours.
“And the generality of Nigerians to continue to practice good public health measures, hand washing, trying to avoid crowded places.
“At least in this phase where we’ve been careful, it is from vigilance perspective, but not to spread panic or hysteria, which is unnecessary, and to rely on trusted information from sources that are expert: the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the NCDC, the World Health Organization, Africa Centres for Disease Control.
“From our own perspective as government, as stewards of this system, what we promise Nigerians is to be forthright, and we did that immediately. We went out, informed Nigerians, and we’ll continue to do that. Whatever information we have to share, and if that information changes, to also update Nigerians so that we keep the trust of Nigerians and their confidence that the authorities have what it takes, and will continue to pursue to protect the health security of this country, as part of an overall regional effort to protect Africa from this outbreak, among other infectious disease outbreaks that are possible.”
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