Following the upsurge in cases of the new variants of COVID-19 in Ekiti, the government on Sunday directed private health facilities to ensure strict adherence to protocols and proper management of the cases.
Dr. Oyebanji Filani, the Ekiti State Commissioner for Health and Human Services, gave the directive in a memo dated Aug. 21 and addressed to the Chairman, Association of General Medical Practitioners of Nigeria, Ekiti State chapter.
Filani said the directive became necessary following the recent increase in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases and late referral of the patients, resulting in fatalities.
The Commissioner said the directive was also aimed at protecting both staff and the patients, as well as reducing the transmission of the deadly virus.
He added that it had been observed the recent fatalities from confirmed cases in the state were patients that were referred, albeit too late, to the state’s Isolation centres from some private health facilities.
Filani disclosed that the state had recorded a higher number of confirmed positive cases of 95 in the month of July and 265 cases to date in August.
This, he noted, was far higher, when compared to the 14 confirmed cases recorded for April to June, 2021, after the second wave was recorded in March.
“This clearly shows that we are in the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.
He advised all private health facilities to ensure that patients with fever, cough or cold symptoms were tested for COVID-19 at their facilities.
The commissioner expressed the government’s readiness to partner with the association and other stakeholders to safeguard the health of the state’s residents.
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