Nigerian Doctors Suspend Strike To Fight Ebola

Nigerian doctors have suspended the strike to help the country fight Ebola epidemic.

According to the statement by the National Medical Association (NMA), Ebola outbreak was the main reason for ending the 5-week-long strike, AFP reports.
Two people have been confirmed dead and 5 more infected with the deadly virus in Lagos. Meanwhile the disease has already claimed more than 900 lives in Africa.

In a densely-populated Lagos, with more than 20 million people, the EVD is expected to spread quickly. Experts say the city’s public health system is not good enough to deal with the rising number of patients infected with Ebola.

It was made known yesterday that some striking doctors volunteered their services to help with the fighting the disease, and NMA Lagos State chapter chairman Dr Tope Ojo said the strike would not stop their members from helping the affected patients.

It would be recalled that this year’s epidemic has been characterized as the worst Ebola outbreak in history. The virus, currently ravaging Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, came to Nigeria with the Liberian Patrick Sawyer. It is worth mentioning that after Sawyer’s death Tope Ojo claimed that doctors would not suspend the strike because of the deadly virus as their demands remained unfulfilled.

Nigerian authorities yesterday requested from the US Centre for Disease Control the experimental drug called ZMapp, which is believed to have saved the lives of 2 Americans in Liberia, and are currently awaiting for the response from the centre. However US President Obama reportedly said it was too early  to send the serum to Africa.

Culled from Naij.com