The Edo State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Patrick Okundia, has said the state government is deploying Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to track and monitor Lassa Fever cases across the state, as part of the state’s new health architecture built to ensure seamless healthcare services to Edo people.
Dr. Okundia, who said this in a chat with journalists, noted that the state government has set up a robust mechanism to track and manage the spread of the ailment in the state, with the active cooperation of the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, in Irrua, Esan Central Local Government Area, Edo State.
According to him, “The state government has built a state-of-the-art emergency centre in Benin to handle Lassa Fever cases and every other emergency situation. We have seen our colleagues in the education sector speak of the Edo Basic Education Sector Transformation (EdoBEST) programme, but it is encouraging to know that we have such technologies in the healthcare sector.
“In this new system, once any condition is discovered in a local government, it is communicated to us through a phone-like tablet to a central server. This has made us manage the situation effectively.”
He continued, “Lassa Fever is a national issue but as we are aware, the Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has over the years prioritised the health of Edo people, investing so much in the sector to holistically revamp the state’s healthcare delivery system. The state, in collaboration with the Federal Government, has done lot of interventions in supplies to the Health Centre of Excellence in Edo State, which is the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH).
“The ISTH, though a Federal Government-owned institution got the sum of N100 million from the state government to assist it in the fight against Lassa Fever. The state also procured lifesaving equipment, ventilators and personal protective equipment. Beyond these, we have realised that the Lassa Fever is a preventable communicable disease, hence our efforts at improving sensitisation and awareness has been geared up.”
