Plateau State has confirmed the death of 8 people due
to Lassa fever, The State’s Commissioner for Health, Kunden Deyin, has said
that the state recorded eight deaths, 13 confirmed cases and 50 suspected cases
of Lassa fever from December 2015 to date.
Mr. Deyin told the News Agency of Nigeria in Jos on
Sunday that the state had commenced aggressive sensitisation and awareness
campaigns in Jos-Bukuru metropolis and in the 17 local government areas.
The Commissioner also said that the ministry was in liaison
with traditional and religious leaders on the need to sensitise their wards and
congregations on the importance of promoting good community and personal
hygiene.
He emphasised that this was
the surest means of discouraging rodents from entering their houses.
"Lassa fever is
transmitted through the urine and excreta of a rat that serves as a reservoir
for the Lassa virus and this rodent is usually attracted to dirty and flirty
environments.
"The ministry, through
its sensitisation campaign, is making an effort to educate the populace on the
importance of keeping a clean environment and on the need to ensure that all
foods are stored in rodent-proof containers.
"We are also encouraging
them to desist from drying food stuff on the road side since the rats can
urinate and defecate in them.
"We embarked on this social mobilisation because
we believe that prevention is better than cure," he said.
He said the ministry had
trained 54 laboratory scientists from the 17 local government areas to ensure
that basic precaution methods were practiced and 20 morticians on how to
decontaminate corpses.
He also said that the ministry
had procured drugs, Personal Protective Equipment and other materials to ensure
that standard precaution methods were observed
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