Health Minister, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, on Thursday, disclosed that 113 health workers had been infected with COVID-19.
Ehanire, made the disclosure at the daily press briefing of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja.
According to him, the infected health workers included those in the public and private health sectors.
Ehanire, therefore, reiterated his call to health workers not to treat coronavirus patients without using personal protective equipment (PPE).
He said the risk of being infected with COVID-19 was the reason why the task force warned health workers against treating patients without using the PPE.
“The latest figure we have is that 113 health workers have been infected. They are not all public health workers. There are some from private hospitals.
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“If you hear us speak frequently against treating coronavirus in private clinics, we are actually referring to people who do so without precaution and training. They risk infecting themselves and their families. Health care workers with no training have no business handling coronavirus.
“As for those who do not have equipment, we have said that we will provide protective equipment. Let me remind you that there is a global shortage. They (the pieces of equipment) are really scarce but we are doing what we can to make sure our frontline workers have the requirement. We also have a stockpile that we can send quickly. For example, we sent a stockpile to Kano,” he stated.
The health minister called on those who test positive to the Coronavirus to stop hiding or seeking alternative treatment.
He cautioned that doing so would put the country in a difficult position and enjoined them to approach government.
“People should come out and seek treatment, not to hide. The ones that we worry most about are the people who hide and look for alternative treatment. They are lost to our counting,” he stated.
