REVISIT AND IMPLEMENT. African Union: African Centre for Disease Control, Prevention (ACDCP)

Now is the time for Nigeria to take the 'leap' in in responding to the Ebola Pandemic for AU member states to recognize its ability to respond to this and future disease outbreaks especially in the identification, response, and recovery.

http://www.dailytimes.com.ng/article/fg-wants-african-centre-disease-control-prevention-nigeria

FG Wants African Centre for Disease Control, Prevention in Nigeria

ARTICLE | APRIL 21, 2014 - 4:11PM | BY AUGUSTINE AMINU

The Federal Government has requested that the proposed African Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ACDCP)’ be set up in Nigeria, Minister of Health, Dr Onybuchi Chukwu, said.

Chukwu said  in Luanda that the request was made to the Conference of African Union Ministers of Health and World Health Organisation.

Chukwu cited the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) as a yardstick for the request, saying Nigeria was the first in Africa to establish such a centre.

He said that the Nigeria centre had been doing well in conducting researches on disease outbreak, prevention and other public health issues.

`` Nigeria, so far, has the best disease surveillance system according to WHO, on the continent of Africa.

``Actually, Nigeria was the first to offer to host the African Centre for Disease Control followed by Ethiopia and since then we have been working toward it.

``It was inconclusive, though Ethiopia brought it up, the decision was that we should still do more consultation and I believe what we are saying here is part of that consultation,’’ he said.

Chukwu said many countries outside Africa, including the U.S., supported the ACDCP initiative.

``The idea is to have a strengthened centre for disease control so that when we have an outbreak it will take the lead in investigation and treatment,’’ he said.

Chukwu recalled that Nigeria was the first country to host its neighbours in 2012 to discuss disease control.

He said WHO recognised that meeting as the first of its kind in the world that a country initiated.

``What we need is what we always say since 2010 when we first called that meeting on cross border infection control.

``Infections do not care for passport or visa, diseases just move across borders, not something a single country can curtail.

``You will see what has happened recently, an outbreak started in Guinea before you knew it, it spread to three other countries,’’ he said.

Chukwu commended President Goodluck Jonathan for his support for the establishment of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.

On the establishment of African Medicine Agency, Chukwu said Nigeria was still in the lead as no other country in the continent had been able to establish a similar body to National Agency for Food Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

He said NCDC, NAFDAC and FRSN were three institutions in Nigeria that had not been replicated in other countries.

``So, Nigeria is solidly behind this establishment of a common body that can regulate drugs within Africa, ‘’he said.

Chukwu lauded ministers of health in Africa for doing much regarding the health sector, including the establishment of African Public Health Fund.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201407031354.html

Liberia:  U.S. Government Donates Personal Protective Equipment to Support the Response to the Ebola Outbreak

3 JULY 2014

PRESS RELEASE

Monrovia — The U.S. Government has donated another supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to the World Health Organization to support the international response to the Ebola outbreak which is affecting Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone.

The donation, including aprons, face masks, gowns, caps and cadaver bags, are in addition to a previous donation by the U.S. Government. Last week, the U.S. Government made a similar donation, including rubber boots, coveralls and gloves, which will protect health workers who are at the forefront of providing essential care to patients who are suspected or confirmed to have the Ebola virus. Health workers who use the protective equipment as recommended are protected from exposure to blood or body fluids from infected patients.
In presenting the items, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Liberia Mission Director, John Mark Winfield, said the U.S. Government is committed to helping in the fight against the spread of the Ebola virus.

World Health Organization Representative to Liberia Dr. Nestor Ndayimirije, who received the donations, immediately passed the essential equipment to the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, and thanked the U.S. Government for the donations, which he said will help boost Liberia’s response to the Ebola virus.

Dr. Ndayimirije said partnership was important in the fight against the outbreak, and urged stakeholders to unite to improve the response by making sure no health worker is infected and dies because of the lack of protective gear.

In receiving the PPE, Liberia’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Bernice Dahn, warned that communities and religious institutions should not try to serve as health facilities. She said Liberians are still in the denial stage, which is fuelling a deterioration of the situation. “At this point, you do not know what you are dealing with,” Dr. Dahn said. “So, don’t keep sick people in your homes or facilities. “
Three weeks ago, Liberia experienced a second wave of the outbreak. Since that time, more than 30 persons have died of the disease.

The U.S. Government has provided additional support to Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone to mitigate the Ebola outbreak, which includes supplying materials and messaging in communities to prevent the spread of Ebola, training environmental health technicians, financial support for deployment of field teams to the WHO Africa Regional Office and WHO's Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN), training of health workers in contact tracing, and the provision of essential supplies for collection, preservation, transport and analysis of blood specimens.