Abdulrazaq Mungadi, Gombe
Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State has assured that the state is ready for any eventuality regarding the global pandemic of the novel coronavirus and that plans to establish a molecular laboratory for testing viruses in the state are in top gear.
According to the governor, who on Thursday unveiled 200-bed capacity isolation and treatment centres in Gombe, the health of the people cannot be equated to any amount spent to ensure wellbeing.
Addressing reporters shortly after commissioning the last isolation centre in Kwadon, Yamaltu-Deba Local Government Area, the governor assured that his administration is willing to spend more to contain the pandemic as well as reposition the health sector for the benefit of the people of the state.
Governor Yahaya said the essence of establishing the isolation and treatment facilities is to prepare the state against the outbreak of the virus and to save lives in case of any eventuality. He also disclosed that while the state is awaiting delivery of the procured Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) machine, the administration is engaging the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to get the necessary accreditation for the establishment of a molecular laboratory that could serve as a testing centre for as many viruses as possible in the state.
Facilities unveiled by the governor includes a 150-bed capacity isolation centre at the Kwadon Infectious Diseases Hospital, which is expected to manage mild to moderate cases, a fully equipped 50-bed capacity facility at the Federal Teaching Hospital (FTH) Gombe and a 12-bed capacity intensive care unit (ICU) fully equipped for the management of severe cases at the State Specialist Hospital.