August 6, 2014 – Lagos State Government today said it is making arrangement with an undisclosed insurance company to provide Life Insurance cover for health workers and any other individual who would volunteer to assist as care-givers for patients infected with the deadly Ebola Virus Disease (EVD).
Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris who made the appeal at a press conference in Lagos noted that it will be out of place to expect foreigners to volunteer as care-givers when Nigerians are not willing to help.
“Through this medium, I once again allay the fears of health workers who have the requisite expertise needed to manage these confirmed and probable cases. The bottom line is that if we cannot provide the requisite quality and quantity of health workers needed for the management of these cases, outsiders would find it difficult to come in and help as is the case in scarce human resource in health setting”, he said.
He said volunteers will be fully kitted adding that the state government will do all it can to protect the lives of those who would volunteer.
The commissioner who briefed the press in company of his colleagues from the Ministry of Information and Strategy, Mr. Remi Ibirogba and his counterpart from Special Duty, Mr. Wale Ahmed confirmed that the nurse who attended to Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian who died in Lagos of EVD died on Tuesday in Lagos at 2:06PM.
He also said that two out of the seven persons that had primary contact with Sawyer are now seriously ill and that 4 persons have tested positive to Ebola.
He called on religious organisation to halt any activities that will bring people together in a large gathering such as religious crusade and convention so as to prevent spread of the disease.
He appealed to striking members of the Nigerian Medical Association to call off the strike to assist those who might be afflicted with the disease.
