The Chief Medical Advisor of Garki Hospital, Abuja, Dr Ibrahim Wada, disclosed on Friday that the hospital has adopted necessary precautionary measures after a patient died from viral infection at the facility on Thursday.
Speaking in a telephone interview with newsmen in Abuja, Wada dispelled rumours making the round that the hospital had been shutdown over the death of a suspected Ebola virus infected person, saying: “The hospital is not closed down as people are insinuating; a man only came in sick and within few hours he died from some complications. That is all I can tell you.”
The patient was reported to have died within four hours after arrival at the hospital.
He continues; “we were then advised by experts to take his samples for laboratory test just for precaution sake and the result is not out.
“You know we are in an epidemic era, no patient died of Ebola at the hospital, though the patient has passed on, he came with his own symptoms.
“Because of the period that we are in, we needed to be cautious because prevention is better than cure,’’ he said.
The Chief Medical Advisor pointed out that; “the hospital is still functioning, but to safeguard the lives of the health workers, the management instituted precautionary measures to handle patients in the hospital.’’
Reacting to the closure of the Accident and Emergency Unit, he said it was part of the precautionary measures being taken by the hospital management.
When asked why all the health workers were seen wearing hand gloves and face masks, he said they were over reacting and had been cautioned.
According to him, “We have been having daily meetings on how to take precautionary measures; it is only the doctors and nurses working closely with patients that require the use of masks and gloves.’’
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