The Nigerian Medical
Association has expressed concerns over the ‘smart testing’ option adopted by
the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control for COVID-19.
It said although the
nation had recorded its 5,000 COVID-19 positive case, the testing method had
not revealed the real incidence of the virus in the country.
The association stated
this in a statement on Thursday by its President, Dr Francis Faduyile; and Secretary General, Dr Olumuyiwa
Odusote.
“It has become apparent
that this method has not revealed the real incidence of COVID-19 in Nigeria.
NMA, therefore, advocates fast-tracking of testing using innovative specimen
collection and transport modalities to ameliorate this deficit in technique,”
the statement read.
NMA while cautioning
the Federal Government against home treatment of COVID-19 patient, urged the
government to put the peculiarities in Nigeria into consideration and adapt the
new World Health Organisation’s regulation.
It said, “The
association is carefully studying the overall impact of the newly approved
WHO’s home treatment policy for COVID-19 patients. While accepting the
noticeable acute shortage of bed spaces available at the designated centres,
NMA cautions that the peculiarities in Nigeria should be taken into
consideration and therefore urges FG to adapt this new regulation.
The NMA described the
acceptance of the herbal remedy from Madagascar ‘Covid Organics’ by the Federal
Government as an act of pulling all stops in search of remedial interventions
in protecting the lives of Nigerians.
“NMA insists that the
herbal mixture undergoes due diligence based on scientific methods before
authorising its use in the polity while urging the government to leapfrog the
revitalisation of research and production activities of our pharmaceutical
industries,” the association added.
The NMA again expressed
displeasure at the continued obstruction of the NCDC by the governments of Kogi
and Cross River states, saying “This impedance is despite the lofty provisions
in the NCDC Establishment Act (2018) which empower the organisation to
‘prevent, detect, monitor and control’ activities and programmes for the
national response against infectious diseases epidemics and other public health
emergencies; and also to ‘lead, develop, coordinate’ these activities.”
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