COVID-19: Public health systems coming under severe strain, WHO warns
…Urges Nigeria not to allow pandemic to eclipse other health issues
The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that public health systems in Africa are coming under severe strain as the unprecedented coronavirus pandemic persists.
The UN health body therefore, urged Nigeria and other African countries to do it best in ensuring that the pandemic does not eclipse other health issues.
“As countries battle to bring the outbreak under control, efforts must also be maintained on other health emergencies and progress made against diseases such as malaria or polio preserved,” the WHO stated in a statement on Thursday.
Prior to the arrival of the novel coronavirus in Africa, the WHO was stressing the need for countries to ensure the continuity of routine essential health services.
According to Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO regional director for Africa, an over-burdened health system not only undermines the effectiveness of the response to COVID-19, but may also undermine the response to a whole host of preventable threats to human health.
He said that even brief interruption of vaccination makes outbreaks more likely to occur, putting children and other vulnerable groups more at risk of life-threatening diseases.
“I urge all countries to not lose focus on their gains made in health as they adapt to tackle this new threat.
“We saw with the Ebola virus disease outbreak in West Africa that we lost more people to malaria for instance, than we lost to the Ebola outbreak. Let us not repeat that with COVID-19,” he said.
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Confirmed COVID-19 cases in Nigeria and other African countries have continued to rise, now exceeding 25,000.
WHO is supporting countries in all aspects of the COVID-19 response and has recently published guidelines for ensuring the continuation of critical health services, including immunization and anti-malaria campaigns.
The guidelines stress the need for countries to take a dynamic approach that mitigates any unavoidable pause in vaccination campaigns.
The consequences of disrupting efforts to control malaria in Africa could be particularly grave.
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