A suspected outbreak of Lassa fever has resulted in the deaths of four individuals, including two pregnant women, in Awe Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, leading to the immediate shutdown of the area's General Hospital.
Outbreak Details and Initial Cases
The tragic sequence of events began when a woman displaying symptoms consistent with Lassa fever was brought to a health facility in Awe. She died before she could receive proper medical attention. Shortly after, her husband also succumbed after presenting similar signs. The situation escalated with the deaths of two pregnant women who were admitted to Awe General Hospital almost simultaneously.
Nurse Ovey Polycarp from the hospital described their condition, stating the women initially showed malaria-like symptoms which rapidly deteriorated into severe bleeding and hemorrhage, leading to their deaths. She highlighted the fear among staff, citing a critical shortage of protective equipment needed to safely manage such infectious outbreaks.
Systemic Failures and Logistical Challenges
Ahmad Abdullahi, the Disease Surveillance Officer for the area, confirmed the developments and pointed to significant systemic problems hindering an effective response. He identified poor handling of suspected cases as a primary obstacle in controlling the disease's spread.
In a startling revelation, Abdullahi disclosed that six suspected cases, who were to be transported by a state-provided ambulance to an isolation facility in Lafia, were allowed to escape before their laboratory test results were even released. This major breach in protocol poses a severe risk of further community transmission.
Abdullahi also lamented the lack of government-provided logistical support, noting that none of the disease surveillance officers across Nasarawa's 13 LGAs have been given motorcycles, severely impairing prompt response efforts, especially in remote areas.
Official Response and Containment Measures
Reacting to the crisis, Dr. Peter Attah, the Director of Public Health at the Nasarawa State Ministry of Health, provided a slightly different account. He stated that only one confirmed case of Lassa fever had been recorded in Awe LGA, and that patient had died before the laboratory confirmation was received.
In response to the outbreak, Awe General Hospital has been temporarily closed. All health workers who had contact with the cases, including the Medical Superintendent, have been placed in isolation as a precautionary measure. To prevent the virus from spreading to nearby communities, fumigation exercises are currently ongoing at the shuttered hospital facility.
The incident underscores the persistent vulnerabilities in Nigeria's public health infrastructure, particularly in managing highly infectious diseases, and calls for urgent intervention in resource provision and protocol enforcement.
