COVID-19: NCDC under attack over tests, slow response
With a rapidly growing number of confirmed COVID-19 cases across the country, experts have expressed concern over what they described as slow pace of laboratory testing, and response by the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC. Since the onset of the recent pandemic outbreak, some Nigerians have taken to social media to complain about not being able to get tested by the NCDC after several calls to the designated emergency numbers provided by the centre.
Among those concerned about the low testing rate in the country is the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA. There have been allegations of cases degenerating into complications before the agency’s team shows up.
For instance, Nigeria with over 200 million people has, according to Worldometer data, tested only about 5,000 people, recording over 300 cases with 10 deaths. In comparison, South Africa, with a population of 59.3 million, recorded more than 2,000 confirmed cases with 25 confirmed deaths, and has carried out about 75,000 tests equating 1,265 tests per million population. Similarly, Ghana, with a population of 31 million, has recorded 408 confirmed cases and eight deaths from conducting 37,400 tests, while Egypt with population of 102 million has recorded 1,939 confirmed cases and 146 deaths after it conducted 25,000 tests, averaging 244 tests per million population.
Also from the data, Brazil, with a population of 212 million, has confirmed 21,000 cases and 1,144 deaths from 63,000 tests corresponding to 296 tests per million population; the USA with a population of 331 million, has confirmed 535,600 cases and 21, 400 deaths from 2.7 million tests corresponding to 8,200 tests per million population and Spain with a population of 46.7 million has confirmed 166,000 cases and 16,980 deaths from 355,000 tests corresponding to 7,593 tests per million population.
Many other Nigerians who shared their experiences with Vanguard, stated that even after they contacted the NCDC that they were manifesting symptoms of the virus, the agency often tells them to self-isolate. Several Nigerians are urging the agency to extend testing to non-symptomatic persons who might also be carrying the virus but wish to be tested.
There are also numerous claims that most times, the designated telephone numbers do not connect. A case in point is the recent complaint contained in a press statement currently being circulated on social media by St Joseph’s Hospital, Adazi-Anukwu over a patient admitted and discharged from one of its facilities, Dr Joe Nwiloh Heart Centre.
According to the hospital, despite its timely high index suspicion of the patient admitted Tuesday April 7, 2020, officials of NCDC never showed until the management, after waiting for 16 hours, decided to send a delegation to the office of the Chief Medical Director, Amaku University Teaching Hospital, Awka. CMD’s intervention got NCDC to come In the letter, signed by the hospital’s administrator, Jerome N. Okafor, the hospital also alleged that it took the intervention of the teaching hospital’s Chief Medical Director for NCDC to send their people to take the patient’s sample for testing and to transfer him to a government-designated isolation centre. READ
“The team said the result will be ready within 48 hours. After 48 hours, the medical team delegated to follow up the case began to call the NCDC office. All they could get after several phone calls is a verbal report that the index patient is positive. “Up till now, the hospital administration has not received any official report of the result of the test. What we have today all over the media is that St. Joseph’s Hospital has a patient with COVID-19.
What is the motive behind this? It is certainly not in the interest of the common people that the hospital serves nor that of the patient,” the hospital lamented. When NCDC was not forthcoming, the patient was discharged by the hospital.
This is just one of the many gaps in NCDC medical laboratory test coordination. NCDC took 2 weeks to take samples A relation of a patient who does not want his name in print, told Vanguard that it took NCDC two weeks to take samples from his brother’s wife, even when they told them that the woman was already manifesting the symptoms.
“It was a nightmare for all of us, hoping every day that NCDC will come. We were all worried because my brother’s wife came from the UK after a two-week conference. We called and we prayed until finally they showed up. The slow pace at which NCDC works can ruin efforts to contain this outbreak,” he stated. Commissioner intervened before NCDC Another returnee told Vanguard that it is was not easy for her to get NCDC team.
According to her, the first time she called the NCDC line they responded and demanded for her address which she gave. It took the intervention of a commissioner before they could come. “I have been calling them, they never responded but the first time I called they picked and promised to come. When they did not come after one week, I was forced to call the state health commissioner. It took the commissioner’s intervention for them to come.
The arrangement is not good for some Nigerians who have nobody in government.” Low tests per population According to its guidelines, the NCDC currently focuses testing only symptomatic and high risk individuals.
However, experts note that while these categories should be priority for testing, other categories should be included. We’re not testing as many as possible —NMA Reacting to this last night, president of Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, Dr. Franci Faduyile, said: Another area that they (NCDC) are not doing as expected is the testing. Our efforts to contain the disease as given by the government is this lockdown and social distancing. ‘’It is not good enough that we are not testing as many as possible.
We are surprised that up till now, we are still having very low number of cases that have been tested, even compared to Ghana. ‘’We are far behind them and South Africa. The onus is the NCDC to ensure that we test properly and get as many as possible tested.
‘’The test cannot ruin the containment efforts because if we do not do any test and everybody stays at home, and we do not mingle, we will stop the transmission of the virus. ‘’However, it is best if we have people who have tested so that we can get those who are positive quarantined and they can be treated in a separate place.
‘’But even if they are positive and they do not mingle with other people they will not transmit the disease. ‘’While I agree that we cannot test the general populace, anybody who had contact should be tested so that we can also be able to treat these asymptomatic carriers and stop them from transmitting the virus.’’ Vanguard
