By Itode Aaron
The Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) has launched an online course on infection prevention and control (IPC) on COVID-19.
Making this known recently in an interview with newmen in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the Director General of NCDC, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, said the is targeted at health care workers, and aimed at reducing the risk of transmission of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases while discharging their official duties in any health care facility in Nigeria.
He stated that while the online course is targeted at health care workers, it is also available to the public, noting that so far, about 850 health care workers have been infected with COVID-19 in the country, while over 230, 000 are infected globally.
“The national strategy in response to the corona virus disease has been multifaceted”, he said, noting that “while the world still seek for a vaccine or cure, compliance with the IPC measures remains one of the most effective interventions to control the ongoing outbreak”.
Towards this end, he explained, “the NCDC has made efforts to rapidly strengthen the capacity of frontline health care workers in infection prevention and control wherever health care is provided”.
According to the NCDC boss, since the first case in Nigeria was confirmed in February, NCDC has supported the training of about 17, 436 health workers in IPC and works in collaboration with the departments of hospital services and food and drugs of the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH), to ensure that health workers are provided with the required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to reduce the risk of health workers’ infection.
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While noting that the online COVID-19 infection prevention course was developed with technical support from e-health Africa, Dr Ihelweazu said “the course features modules on standard and transmission-based precautions, use of PPE and other essential aspects of infection control in health care.
The course, he explained further, which will provide a certificate of participation to participants, is also “designed to document vital information to monitor IPC compliance across health facilities at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels in public, private and faith-based facilities in Nigeria”.
“The infection prevention and control measures cuts across all other components of the COVID-19 response in Nigeria, and is critically for strengthening national health security”, he said.
Meanwhile, registration for the free online course can be done through the link: www.elearning.ncdc.gov.ng/courses/infection-prevention-and-control-for-Covid-19.
