60 to isolate for 14-days,Bayelsa COVID 19 taskforce

By Edighomor Victor-Yenagoa

The Bayelsa State Taskforce on COVID-19 on Thursday, said that over 60 persons have been enlisted and counselled for the mandatory 14- self isolation.

Daily watch reports that the Co-Chairman of the state’s Taskforce on Covid-19, Dr Inodu Apoku, who made the disclosure at a news conference in Yenagoa, said that they have all been assigned to volunteer health workers, whom follow up on them daily.

He explained that so far, they have all been very cooperative and non has developed any symptoms suggestive of Covid-19. That they have all been given facemasks, gloves, thermometers and hand sanitizers.

“As you are all aware, we recorded our first case of Covid-19 on April Sunday, 25, 2020. This was the only positive result among 4 other results we received on that faithful day.

“So far we have sent over 260 samples to the Reference Laboratory in Irrua Specialist Hospital,Edo State. This is the first case of Covid-19 in our dear State.

“The patient is a middle-aged female and a patient of the Specialist Hospital. She is a known hypertensive and diabetic, and presented with a poor appetite, fever headache, non productive cough and chest pain.

“She did not admit to any travel history nor contact with a Covid-19 patient. She was admitted for further observation and had spent 2 days at the Bayelsa Specialist Hospital when the Covid-19 test result came.

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“She was immediately evacuated to the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH) isolation centre and all her contacts have been adequately followed up.

“The Bayelsa Specialist Hospital was also shut down and decontamination procedures has since been concluded. The facility will be reopened shortly,” he said.

He said the that the State Public Health Multisectoral Emergency Operations Centre has since been fully activated at 3 (the highest Emergency Operation level in the State) with support from the National Centre for Disease Control, (NCDC) World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF and other partners.

The Co-Chairman, said that the Bayelsa Government has also made concrete plans to ensure they do not lack any basic item such as food, water, toiletries during this period of self isolation.

The Medical Practitioner, said all high risk contacts samples have since been collected and sent for testing while risk communication and community engagement with these persons are ongoing.

He said that the index case has also been very cooperative and accommodating of the health workers and has religiously taken all medications prescribed at the isolation centre after her initial rejection of the result and hysteria as demonstrated by her initial statement that she was infected with the Virus by the State.

Dr Inodu, said her vital signs including her temperature have also been normal since admission. She is looking a lot radiant when compared to the first day she was admitted at the Isolation Facility. A repeat test will be conducted shortly.