The National Centre for Disease Control [NCDC] has said additional eight people had died from the Lassa fever ravaging 19 states of the country.

The NCDC in an update, on Monday, said that there were 482 suspected cases during the week under review, with 109 confirmed cases recorded from 43 council areas in 19 states.

It said,

“Four new health care workers were affected in Ondo, Delta and Kaduna states in the reporting week. The National Lassa fever multi-partner, multi-sectoral Emergency Operation Centres continue to coordinate the response activities at all levels.”

The centre added that as part of the measure to contain the spread of the disease, multi-sectoral, multi-disciplinary Public Health Emergency Operation Centres had been activated in affected states.

It said that it had also disseminated safe burial guideline in the areas and established Lassa fever laboratory at the Federal Medical Centre Owo.

Last week, the centre said 18 people were killed by Lassa fever, bringing the total death recorded through the diseases to 103 this year.

On coronavirus as part of Nigeria’s preparedness, a Coronavirus Preparedness Group was established by NCDC. It added that the group included representatives from the Port Health Services of the Federal Ministry of Health, Health Promotion Division of the FMOH, Office of the National Security Adviser, Ministry of Defence Health Implementation Programme, Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Orientation Agency, World Health Organisation, World Bank, US Centre for Disease Control, Public Health England, Pro-Health International and Resolve to Save Lives.

It stated,

“The provision of specialised care is a critical component of COVID-19 (coronavirus) response activities. In the last one month, NCDC has conducted further assessments in existing infectious disease treatment centres. This assessment has focused on identifying gaps and developing plans to rapidly ensure that we are prepared to manage all cases of COVID-19, regardless of the severity.

“From the 17th – 19th of February, 2020, the Coronavirus Preparedness Group successfully conducted a workshop to develop protocols and guidelines for case management of COVID-19. These guidelines will be used by health care workers in providing care for patients, in the event of a COVID-19 outbreak in Nigeria.”