UNICEF Holds Training for Enugu Health Workers on Safe Handling Of COVID-19 Patients

Posted by African Examiner Featured, Latest Headlines, News Across Nigeria, News From The State Thursday, May 21st, 2020

From Ignatius Okpara, Enugu

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – As part of measures to strengthen the capacity of health care workers in the management, infection prevention, and control, as well as surveillance, of the dreaded Coronavirus pandemic, the United Nations Children’s Fund, (UNICEF), has commenced training of 100 skilled and non-skilled health personnel in Enugu state.

African Examiner reports that participants at the integrated training programme are made up of medical Doctors, Nurses, Laboratory handlers, pharmacists, Morticians, cleaners, among others, and are drawn from the three isolation and treatment centers in the state.

Speaking at the event which began Wednesday in Enugu, Dr. Ifeyinwa Anyanyo, Health Specialist, (UNICEF) Enugu Field Office, explained that the international organization is holding the integrated training “in conjunction with the Enugu state Ministry of Health at Nike Lake Hotel Enugu from 20th to 27th May 2020.

She said: “Following a gap analysis by the State Ministry of Health, a need to train Health workers on COVID -19 Case Management; Infection, Prevention and Control; as well as Surveillance was identified. As a result, 100 skilled and non- skilled health workers pooled from three Isolation centers in the state will be trained in two batches over the week.

According to her, “At the end of the training, it is expected that the capacities of 100 health care workers will be strengthened in the areas of case management, surveillance and Infection prevention and control, thereby enabling them to efficiently manage and tackle the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In his remark, one of the resource persons and an expert in infection disease control, Dr .Eddy Ndibuagu, from Enugu state university of science and Technology ESUT, had
applauded UNICEF for organizing and funding the training workshop for health care providers, stating that the agency is empowering them to tackle COVID 19 pandemic.

The Medical practitioner, hinted that among the participants are also Consultants, adding that the 100 persons were picked from the three functional isolation and treatment centers, which includes, ESUT Teaching hospital, Diagonostic Center and the center located at Nsukka.

He, however, stressed the need for health care providers to be properly equipped with the necessary knowledge to enable them tackle the COVID-19 pandemic ravaging the globe including Nigeria, describing the participants as front liners in the battle against the dreaded Corona Virus.

Dr. Ndibuagu, equally reminded health care providers that they are like soldiers in the war front, stating that soldiers do not run away when there is an ongoing war because if they do, the enemy will overrun their community or territory and will also kill the soldier at last, hence the need for health workers to live up to expectations in this critical period.

Also speaking, a resident doctor at the (ESUT) Teaching hospital , Dr Chidi Ikpekaazu, of the Department of Community Medicine, said what they expected to learn from the workshop is to improve their level of care for the patients of the dreaded disease, adding that “the whole aim of the training exercise is to reduce drastically, the level of COVID-19 in Enugu state and Nigeria in general.