A medical doctor has described how a nursing mother who is one of
the confirmed cases of the Ebola virus in Lagos contracted the
disease while attending her antenatal care at First Consultant
Hospital in Obalende, Lagos where the first victim of Ebola virus
in Nigeria, Patrick Sawyerr, died. The lady was confirmed to have the
deadly disease after testing positive at the NNPC staff clinic on Muri Okunola street in the Victoria Island
area of Lagos.
Speaking anonymously with Punch, the doctor said;
Speaking anonymously with Punch, the doctor said;
'The lady attended ante-natal at First Consultant prior to the arrival of the Liberian, Mr. Patrick Sawyer. She was delivered of her baby at the hospital after which she was discharged. A few weeks later, Mr. Sawyer came around and was attended to by health workers. He was first treated for malaria, then typhoid, before there was high index of suspicion. He tested positive for Ebola and died. Then the woman, who gave birth at the hospital came back to the hospital for her baby’s immunization. The nurses who attended to Sawyer also attended to her. When she visited the place again last week, she discovered the place had been shut down for proper fumigation as a means of control against Ebola.” he said. Continue...
Seeing that the hospital has been shut down, the lady
who had started showing signs of fever proceeded to the NNPC staff
clinic which was close by.
The management of the hospital after confirming she had the deadly virus immediately shut down the hospital indefinitely.'She was first treated for Malaria. However, after some medical tests, there was a high suspicion of Ebola haemorrhagic fever. On Friday, the Lagos State’s emergency response team on Ebola virus came around and took her to the Infectious Diseases Hospital,” he added.
Confirming the doctor's report, the Medical Officer
of Health, Iru-Victoria Island Local Council Development Area, Dr. Wale
Akeredolu, said the woman's baby has been quarantined and is under
surveillance
“The baby has also been quarantined to see if after the incubation period of two to 21 days, she would manifest the symptoms of Ebola.” he said