Bayelsa, Kebbi discharge more COVID-19 patients

Bayelsa and Kebbi states have discharged seven more COVID-19 patients.

Two patients were discharged in Bayelsa on Saturday while Kebbi discharged five patients on Sunday.

In Bayelsa, Inodu Apoku, the co-chairman of the state COVID-19 task force, said the two discharged patients were contacts of its index case.

In a statement, Apoku said only one active case of COVID-19 is remaining in the state.

“The patients, who were admitted at the isolation centre at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH) Okolobiri, were linked to the index case that was discharged about a week ago,” he said.

“These patients have also met all other National Centre for Disease Control, guidelines for discharge.

“Consequently, they have been discharged today (Saturday).

“So there is only one active COVID-19 case in the state after discharging the index case and the other four linked cases.”

In Kebbi, the state government said the new recoveries bring the number of discharged patients to 16.

Jaafar Mohammed, the state commissioner for health, commended health workers and other stakeholders for their resilience towards containing the spread of the disease in the state.

“I must put it on record that the taskforce, health team and other related officers have been working tirelessly to effectively control the spread of the pandemic,” he said

Abubakar Bagudu, the governor, approved the payment of operational safety allowances for frontline health workers.

Yahaya Sarki, special adviser to the governor on media, said the occupational safety allowances have been graded according to the level of risks involved.

“These allowances are structured to enhance the pay for the frontline health workers as a light compensation to the risks involved in handling the patients infected with COVID-19,” he said.

“The affected workers include public health officers, medical officers, nurses, pharmacists and medical laboratory scientists.

“Others are disease surveillance and notification officers, directors of PHCs in the LGAs and specialised medical consultants.

He said consultants and medical officers would receive N20,000 and N15,000 daily respectively.

“Nurses, pharmacists and medical laboratory scientists will receive N10,000, daily while ambulance drivers, cleaners and security personnel will receive N5,000 daily,’’ he said.

“Each of the task force members will get N250,000, while the chairman will receive N500,000.

“Consultants will receive N300,000, while medical officers, pharmacists, medical laboratory scientists and nurses at the isolation centres will each be given N250,000.

“Also, medical officers at hospitals trained on infection prevention, control and case management would each receive N200,000 while nurses at general hospitals trained on infection prevention, control and case management will also collect N150,000 each.

Other categories of officers, including epidemiologists and surveillance officers, disease surveillance and notification officers (DSNO), directors of PHC at the state and local government levels would receive N150,000.