Coronavirus: WHO Searching For Italian's Co-Passengers

The World Health Organisation (WHO) is making efforts to trace the passengers on the same flight as the Italian national who flew into the country with the coronavirus disease, this is according to the Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi.

The Italian national is currently receiving treatment at the Infectious Disease Centre, Yaba.

The commissioner said, “The 65 passengers who have travelled out of Lagos are being tracked by WHO and state epidemiologists because they are no longer under our jurisdiction.

 “Out of the 84 based in Lagos, 49 are reachable, 35 are unreachable. We are trying our best through other means to contact them.

“The 35 passengers are unreachable because of the abnormal data they might have provided for us in their forms; wrong information via telephone numbers, residential addresses and next of kin.

“I spoke with the Commissioner of Health there yesterday (Tuesday)  and so far nobody has developed the symptom.  Six people from the hotel he lodged in Lagos are also being monitored. The drivers that were involved are also being monitored. We don’t have any case at the moment. Nobody is in isolation except the index case. Four people have been tested so far, three were negative, one  positive.”

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Patient's Name Yet To Be Disclosed

The commissioner gave reasons as to why the name of the carrier will not be revealed, stating medical ethics as one.

“We cannot give out information about the identity of the patient; it is against our practice as medical professionals, unless you get it from somewhere else, you won’t get it from me. What value is it to you? Would you like me to give your own private information out to the public? It is against our ethical rules of engagement, we can’t do that, there is patient-doctor confidentiality,” he said.