• Thursday, March 28, 2024
businessday logo

BusinessDay

Lassa Fever kills medical doctor in Nasarawa

FG confirms 14 suspected cases of Lassa fever in Kaduna

Ahmed Isaiah, a medical doctor and staff of the Nasarawa State Hospital Management Board, has died from Lassa Fever related ailment.

Peter Attah, Nasarawa State chairman of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), confirmed the death on Tuesday during a procession organised by the NMA to honour the deceased, in Lafia, the state capital.

The association had a procession from the Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital (DASH), to the headquarters of the State Hospitals Management Board in Lafia. Until his demise, Ahmed Isaiah was working at General Hospital in Garaku, Kokona local government Area of the state.

Attah explained that the doctor died on December 31, 2022 at the National Hospital, Abuja, after a brief illness.

“As an association, we got information when he was already dead, but from our investigation, the sickness started like a fever, but he kept working even when he was on treatment.

“While on call, on December 24, he collapsed at the theatre when carrying out a surgery on a patient and his family had to rush him to the national hospital for attention, but unfortunately we lost him,” Attah added.

He further said that it was after the death of the doctor, that results from the sample taken came out and it was found to be positive of Lassa Fever.

He lamented that the deceased had to go to work and carry out a surgery even when he was sick because there were only two at the General Hospital, Garaku.

“How can only two doctors handle patients of the entire local government of over 150,000 population? The workload is too much.

Read also: Omicron variant: WHO advocates mask-wearing on long flights in US

“The government should employ more doctors and introduce incentives to curtail brain drain in the state”, he added.

Egba Edogo, the chief medical director of the State Hospital Management Board, consoled the association over the death of their colleague who was a staff of the board. He acknowledged that the deceased was dedicated to his duty while alive and was good to those that worked with him.