The Coordinator of PTF on COVID-19, Dr Sanni Aliyu, have emphasized on the need to strengthen the country’s capacity to manage infectious Disease, as the COVID -19 pandemic have exposed the weakness in the health system.
He made the disclosure during an online Pre-Conference of the 2020, Civil Society Accountability Forum, held in Collaboration with Stop TB partnership Nigeria.
He highlighted that there is need to engage stakeholders in order to maintain health care facilities.
Speaking further, the Chairman of the Board of Stop TB Nigeria, Dr Ayodele Awe, said the lockdown and fear of COVID-19 has reduced patient’s attendance in the hospital by almost 50%.
“Some facilities closed down as result of infection of health workers with COVID-19.
Even some of the health workers were scared of attending to patient”.
In the same vein, he added that a larger percentage of undisclosed cases of Tuberculosis are Found in the Community.
“We discovered that Efforts towards the disease control failed due to the fact that Community Outreach stopped.
Community level is the operational level for TB, and the level for the integration of diseases”.
He said there is need to increase collaborative activities to detect TB cases.
“Community system strengthening is necessary for community network linkages, partnerships ,coordination ,resources as well as capacity building.”
The Executive Secretary , Stop TB Partnership Nigeria, Mayowa Joel, stressed on the need to establish presidential Task Force on TB, similar to that of COVID19, that will galvanize efforts to end TB in Nigeria.
He said there is need to work with stakeholders and put in place structures
at the community level.
According to him, the STOP TB partnership is working with government, both at the Federal, and State level.
