Parents raise concern over suspected diphtheria outbreak in King’s College

Parents of students in King’s College Lagos (KCL) have raised concerns over reports of a suspected diphtheria outbreak in the school that led to hospitalisation of some students.

Diphtheria is a bacterial infection caused by the corynebacterium species that affect the nose, throat, and sometimes, skin of an individual.

Some symptoms of diphtheria include fever, runny nose, sore throat, cough, red eyes, neck swelling, and difficulty in breathing.

The parents who spoke in separate interviews with NAN on Sunday blamed the outbreak on the unsanitary condition of the school.

A parent who pleaded anonymity faulted the management of the school for its seeming silence and for not swinging into action promptly in the face of the outbreak.

“If there are no cases, why are the students mandated to wear nose masks and some of them taken to Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) for treatment? There were cases late last year,” the parent said.

“We heard that officials of the World Health Organisation (WHO) were in the school yesterday (March 8), to sensitise the students on preventive measures against diphtheria disease.

“Why is the school secretive about the issue? A few weeks ago, some parents raised concerns that their children had fallen sick and were diagnosed with diphtheria at the hospital.

“Even some PTA Exco don’t like parents to openly complain about such. Last week, the school sent a message to parents to sign a consent form that would enable their children to receive diphtheria vaccines in the school premises.”

A copy of the consent form obtained showed that the routine immunisation was done by the school in collaboration with the Lagos state primary healthcare board through Eti-Osa LGA.

Two other parents said in December, their sons were hospitalised and treated for diphtheria.

“It was by God’s grace that my son survived,” one of the parents said.

“I was called to pick him up. He complained of sore throat. His neck was swollen and he had high fever.

“When we got to the hospital, he was on admission for over a week. In fact, there was another student who was hospitalised for same ailment the same time, but he didn’t pull through.”

Reacting, Ngozi Ogbonna, the school’s public relations officer, appealed for calm, assuring that efforts are ongoing to control the situation.

“As part of their efforts, the management and PTA EXCO met and contacted the relevant government health agencies, who, in collaboration, advised that booster doses of vaccines should be administered to the students,” she said.

“However, some of the students who manifested symptoms have been isolated, taken to LUTH for diagnosis and results awaited.

“Other students who manifest symptoms subsequently would be taken to LUTH accordingly, and parents contacted for follow-up.

“Delegates of the World Health Organisation visited the annex campus this evening to play their own role in controlling the situation.

“On this note, we, therefore, implore parents to remain calm and prayerful as everything is under control. We shall overcome.”