The Gombe State Government has advised Christians to protect themselves from the Coronavirus pandemic, by adhering strictly to the COVID-19 Protocols during the festive period in the state.
The Gombe State Commissioner for Health, Dr Habu Dahiru, told Journalists in Gombe, that the move became necessary due to an increase in the number of infections in the state in recent days.
Recent records place Gombe State among 18 states in Nigeria with the increase in Coronavirus infections, which the State Ministry of Health said was evident in complaints of fever and severe body pains.
Dr Dahiru said there had been a significant rise in case trend since December 6, with a 124.1% increase compared to last week, where up to 18 states had shown an increasing trend including Gombe State.
He said because of that that, the people of Gombe should during the festive period observe the restrictions put in place to control the spread of the infection in the state.
“In addition to vaccination, the public is further advised to continue to adhere strongly to the non-pharmaceutical preventive measures n this regard, I wish to remind the public during this period of festivities, that as we interact together as families and loved ones, we must learn to protect one another from this pandemic by observing the following measures: Wash your hands regularly with soap under running water or use hand sanitiser, when available cover your mouth and nose properly with a tissue paper when sneezing or coughing. Or cough into your elbow if tissue paper is not available avoid close contact with anyone showing symptoms of respiratory illness such as coughing and sneezing, avoid self-medication and report to the nearest health facility if you experience any of the above-mentioned symptoms,” Dr Dahiru said.
He also called on healthcare workers to observe standard infection prevention and control measures, while the public should also maintain social distance and avoid crowded places when one experiences any or some of the symptoms.
The Gombe State Commissioner for Health, however, said the rapid response team at State and LGA levels were available to respond to suspected cases of COVID-19.
He said the Government was committed to increased testing for early case detection and management, saying all variants have shown not to be resistant against the vaccines being used.
He, however, explained that since the first case of Covid-19 was detected in the state, 90, 885 people were tested, out of which 2, 776 cases tested positive and 2,690 others had been managed and discharged, with 60 deaths.
He said Gombe still lagged far behind with only about 115,000 people who have taken their first vaccine doses, while about 53,000 have completed the required two doses of either Moderna or AstraZeneca.
“Hence of the desired target of 50% of the state’s population, only 7.12% has been attained so far (as of 23 December). Therefore, I wish to call on every person not yet vaccinated to avail themselves to the 166 Covid-19 vaccination teams found in our facilities across the 11 LGAs. We have sufficient stock for the public. For those who have completed their scheduled doses of vaccination, booster doses will soon be made available, and all will be eligible after 6 months of the completion of the schedule.”
He said the State Ministry of Health had continued to coordinate all response activities and that while the changes in the virus had resulted in different variants, the variants had shown more virulence in some cases and are more infectious, across this country.
PIAK
