Parents urge FG to equip university clinics to check COVID-19 spread

Parents of university students and health workers have called on the Federal Government as a matter of necessity to provide safety equipment and train medical personnel working in all university clinics across the country in order to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic before the resumption of students.

The appeal was made by some of the parents who spoke to a group of Journalists in Bauchi expressing worries that universities will resume very soon without any safety measures put in place to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic in the university clinics across the country.

One of the parents who spoke to the Journalists, Alh Isa, called on the Federal Government to as a matter of urgency contact all relevant stakeholders for inputs and put in place every necessary effective strategy that will ensure public safety before universities resumed.

He also said that the FG should ensure that medical doctors and other healthcare personnel in the Universities Health Centres across the country are trained adequately on coronavirus safety protocols before the resumption.

He said: “In order to reduce the spread of COVID-19 pandemic among students, staff and the rest of community members on university campuses, adequate protective provision must be made.”

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Another Parent, Mr Ezy Shallom, revealed that some of the doctors in the clinics need adequate knowledge on Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) stressing that, “With other essential medical consumables required in the discharge of their duties during the pandemic the infection can be checked.”

He added: “There is a need to provide the university clinics with essential infrastructure including COVID-19 isolation centres, where suspected cases can be kept for sample collection, clinical evaluation and testing.”

Another respondent, a health worker in one of the universities who pleaded anonymity stressed that the Federal Government should also pay Doctors and other health workers working in the universities clinics their COVID-19 hazard and inducement allowances.

He said: “Allowances are paid to selective Health care personnel under the Federal Ministry of Health and refuse to do the same to doctors and other Healthcare Professionals under Nigerian Universities and institutions of higher learning.”

“Therefore, Universities should not be allowed to resume without adequately preventive measures put in place in addressing the dreaded virus,” the health worker said.

While Responding, Vice-Chancellor of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi, Professor Mohammed Abdulaziz said in a telephone interview, that the University was making all efforts for the university clinics were equipped adequately to be able to handle the challenges of the pandemic.

The VC also said that the university management has set up a committee to work out modalities in the university that would provide safety equipment and training of staff of the clinic before the students resume.

He explained: “The committee comprises stakeholders such as the clinic Medical Director, environmental department, Academics, ICT among others to come up with a report and strategies on the provision of equipment to curtail the spread of coronavirus.

Mohammed Abdulaziz added: “The committee is to Consider the hand washing, physical /social distance protocols in lecture halls as well as training on using PPEs and others.”

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FG to equip university clinics

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FG to equip university clinics