Health

Northern youths celebrate Alliance Hospital CMD, gives him award

Published

11 months ago

March 21, 2024

Youths from the 19 northern states of Nigeria, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), on Wednesday, celebrated the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of Alliance Hospital, Dr Christopher Otabor for reversing medical tourism in the country.

The youths expressed their joy, saying that the patriotic zeal injected into the medical profession by Dr Otabor has helped to reverse medical tourism, thus generating income for the country.

The youths who operated under the aegis of the Northern Youths Association of Nigeria expressed their appreciation and presented to the Chief consultant orthopedic surgeon, the highest leadership award.

The youth presented to the CMD “Sir Ahmadu Bello Platinum Leadership and Northern Heroes Award.

Speaking through its president, Comrade Adams Bogoro, the group explained that
having followed the activities of the medical practitioner for long, it found him worthy to bell one of the recipients of the prestigious awards.

Bogoro described Otabor as an “Icon of nation-building, explaining that the award was in recognition of his immense contributions and philanthropy.

He said that the CMD had performed well in the areas of human transformation and educational transformation for the benefit of humanity and the country at large.

Bogoro said that the Northern Youth Association of Nigeria found it compelling to identify with Otabor for positive contributions to humanity and Nigerian society, to spur him to do more.

He insisted that Alliance Hospital had done very well to change the narrative in medical tourism, adding that the Northern youths were in the hospital to identify with the hospital.

“We are here to identify with you on what you have been doing. You have contributed positively to the Nigerian society, so we are here to encourage you to do more.

“We have been following your antecedents for quite some time, this hospital has done well in the area of impacting health, It is based on this that this group deemed it fit to consider you as one of the recipients of our awards.

“The award is to spur you, the award is to encourage you, the award is to motivate you to do more.

“The award is also to catalyze for you to continue to give your best to the service of the nation as you have always been doing.

“We are one people with a common destiny as exemplified by the founding fathers of Nigeria, most especially those from the northern extraction such as Sir Ahmadu Bello, Abubarkar Tafarwa Balewa, Joseph Tarka, Mallam Aminu Kano, Sunday Awoniyi and others, may their souls rest in peace.

“As part of the convention of the group, we try as much as possible to identify with people like you who have demonstrated patriotism to the country,” Bogoro said.

In his response, Otabor who was overwhelmed with joy thanked the group for finding him worthy of the award.

He commended the youth for organizing, and not joining the bandwagon in the society.

“This is quite commendable. When you have many youths constituting themselves as a problem to the country by getting involved in terrorism, banditry, and armed robbery, here you are organizing yourselves for a good course, yours is commendable.

“On behalf of the management of Alliance Hospital and the highly respected top management staff, I wish to formally accept this award, the Saudana Award. Thank you very much for considering me fit for this prestigious award.

I want to assure you that this would encourage us to do even more of what you have already seen in me,” he said.

“I warmly welcome you to Alliance Hospital, Abuja. A one-stop shop for multi-specialty care.

Alliance Hospital was established in 2011, with a clear mandate of stopping medical tourism, because medical tourism has been a big shame to this country.

” With a population of over 200 million people, our nationals are going out of the country for medical care- to India, Egypt, USA and other countries.

“A lot of people talk about the problem and not many people talk about the solution, so I decided that we would be part of the solution rather than just talking about the problem.

Share on Facebook

Health

Nigeria On Alert After Ebola Outbreak Confirmed In Uganda – NCDC DG

Published

9 hours ago

February 3, 2025

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), Dr. Jide Idris, has announced that the country is on high alert following the confirmation of an Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in Uganda.

He disclosed this on Sunday during an interview in Abuja.Idris stated that while Nigeria has no reported cases of Ebola, the NCDC, in collaboration with key stakeholders, has heightened surveillance measures to prevent the virus from being imported into the country.He explained that the outbreak, caused by the Sudan strain of the virus, was confirmed by Uganda’s Ministry of Health on January 30, 2025.“So far, one case and one death have been reported in Wakiso, Mukono, and Mbale City in Mbale District.

“Ugandan health authorities are currently tracking 44 contacts to curb further spread,” he added.In response to the outbreak, Idris said that the NCDC has taken several measures, including updating its Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) emergency contingency plan, increasing screening at points of entry—particularly international airports—and optimizing diagnostic capacity for EVD testing in designated laboratories.He added that the agency has also mobilized Lassa fever testing laboratories, which can be scaled up for Ebola testing if needed.

The NCDC Director-General assured Nigerians that proactive steps were being taken to mitigate any risk of an outbreak.

“While there is no immediate cause for panic, we must remain vigilant. The Ebola Sudan strain has no approved vaccine, making early detection and containment critical,” he said.

He urged Nigerians to follow key preventive measures, including practicing good hand hygiene by washing hands regularly with soap and water or using hand sanitizers.He advised avoiding contact with individuals showing symptoms such as fever, weakness, vomiting, and unexplained bleeding, as well as refraining from consuming bushmeat, particularly bats and primates.

“Seek immediate medical attention if you experience symptoms after traveling to an affected country,” he emphasized.

Additionally, Idris called on health workers to maintain a high index of suspicion, use personal protective equipment (PPE), and report suspected cases immediately.Idris noted that while the World Health Organization (WHO) has not recommended travel restrictions, he advised Nigerians to avoid non-essential travel to countries with confirmed Ebola cases

“Travelers returning from affected countries in the last 21 days with symptoms such as fever, sore throat, vomiting, or unexplained bleeding should immediately call the NCDC toll-free number (6232) or their State Ministry of Health hotline,” he emphasized.

Beyond Ebola, he highlighted that Nigeria is currently battling outbreaks of Lassa fever, meningitis, diphtheria, Mpox, measles, and anthrax.Idris reaffirmed the NCDC’s commitment to strengthening surveillance and response efforts across the country.Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is caused by the Ebola virus, which belongs to the Filoviridae family.There are five known strains of the virus, with the Zaire strain being the most deadly, followed by the Sudan strain.

Ebola is transmitted through direct contact with bodily fluids of infected individuals (blood, vomit, sweat, feces, saliva), contaminated objects, or infected animals.

The virus can spread through handling bushmeat, such as bats and primates, which are often carriers.Symptoms typically begin 2-21 days after exposure and include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea, rash, and unexplained bleeding or bruising.

As the disease progresses, organ failure and death may occur.Ebola outbreaks have occurred sporadically in several African countries, with the largest outbreak happening in West Africa between 2014 and 2016. The virus remains a public health concern in countries with known endemic transmission.

Share on Facebook