COVID-19: NMA allays fears of stigmatization in Anambra

Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Anambra State chapter has allayed fears over stigmatization and dramatization of COVID-19 pandemic in the state.

The Chairman, Dr. Jide Onyekwelu disclosed this at the ongoing 2-day training on COVID-19 Infection Prevention and Control (IPC), in Agulu, Anaocha Local Government Area of the state.advised patients to report to the hospitals when they noticed any of the Covid-19 symptoms, warning that staying at home could be risky.

He admitted the initial dramatization of the virus which resulted to suspected patients being stigmatized by people, but said those were no longer obtainable.

He said, “Many sick persons are afraid of going to hospital because of the fear of being neglected and would be branded COVID-19 patients simply because they have fever.

“This is not true. I must confess that initially, there was much dramatization of the pandemic which led to some stigmatization of patients. But those have all been removed.

“No doubt, COVID-19 is very infectious, but not very deadly. Out of 100 people with the infections, probably one or two will die, and the remaining 97 will survive, with or without medicine.

“Initially, there were precautions from the Federal Ministry of Health that only designated hospitals will treat COVID-19. But because of the constraints in making appropriate diagnoses early enough, it’s been liberalised.

“Every health facility can now handle suspected COVID-19 case. You no longer need to wait for confirmatory results to come out.

“Sometimes, before the results come out, the patient has recovered, the same person that could have had problem if he were not treated, because he’s waiting for confirmation.

“People should not be afraid of reporting to hospital when they notice any of the COVID-19 symptoms. Don’t stay at home. Even if they brand it COVID-19, there’s treatment.

“If you don’t go, you may have complications. But if you go, the chances are minimized. There’s no stigmatization and no drama about it.”

The NMA further disclosed that there had been improvement in the provision of Personal Protective Equipment for his members by the government.

“Within the ambit of available resources, they are providing PPE to Isolation centers and giving advice and we’re going to collaborate with them to provide more PPE for the private sector,” he added.

Earlier, Commissioner for Health in the state, Dr. Vincent Okpala disclosed that a total of 25 healthcare workers have been affected by the disease in the state, including two doctors, one pharmacist, two lab personnel, eight nurses.

He said, “As of today, we have a total of 181 confirmed cases. We have five key Local Government Areas where we have high degree of community transmission.
“We keep asking people to do the needful by observing all the COVID-19 protocols, including wearing of facemasks and maintaining social distancing.

“This is not a time to be attending weddings and funerals in large groups.

He applauded the leadership of the medical body for the Initiative, expressing optimism that the training would boost their confidence and decrease adverse outcome.

“It’s a great thing seeing NMA leadership organise this. The healthcare workers are going to learn more about how to stop the infection spread from patient to health workers, and vice versa.

“Having an informed health care provider, creates a confident one. The training will boost their confidence and decrease adverse outcome.

On the level of compliance among students in the exit classes since resumption, the Commissioner described it as satisfactory.

He added, “Before resumption, Ministry of Education and Health collaborated to ensure safe resumption. Certain rules were stressed to be in place, one of which was mitigation measures.

“Each school in the state norminated infirmarians that were trained to understand the mitigation measures and preparedness and how to respond approprietly.

“We’re very confident that schools are ready and are doing the right thing. Each school was also mandated to set up a COVID-19 committee made up of medical teachers and students.

“I’m very happy with their level of preparedness. We also have a monitoring team that visits the school regularly to ensure compliance.”