Suspected cases of 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has sent some doctors and nurses scampering for safety at the Gbagada General Hospital, Lagos.
The incident reportedly occurred on Thursday around midnight.
Four white men believed to be Egyptians were said to have been driven to the hospital in a private vehicle and one of them was coughing uncontrollably.
A worker at the hospital said that when some doctors and nurses came to the vehicle and saw one of the men coughing and showing other signs of the virus, they immediately fled.
According to the source, one of the medical personnel was shouting at the driver to immediate drive the men to the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH), Yaba for attention.
“It was around midnight that they came to the hospital and I was on duty that day.
“So, when they got to the emergency ward, nurses and doctors on duty came out to attend to them. But upon getting to the vehicle, they noticed that the four occupants were whites with one of them critically ill and coughing uncontrollably.
“Immediately the nurses and doctors saw them, they all took to their heels.
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“Some of the nurses began to shout ‘this is coronavirus! Coronavirus is not my portion. God forbid! Here is not IDH (Infectious Disease Hospital), Yaba, please go there. Where is security? Security, please come and send these people out of this place.’
“When the screaming became too much, some of the security guards on duty that day summoned courage from afar and ordered them out of the hospital, because they too were afraid and they drove out.
“They were not allowed to come down from their vehicle.
“Everybody ran because some of the doctors said the symptoms that they saw were clearly that of COVID-19.
“Their visit truly caused commotion at the hospital,” Saturday Punch quoted the source as saying.
The management of the hospital has reportedly barred foreigners from being treated at the hospital following the incident.
Confirming the incident, Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. Adeleke Kaka, noted that only one Egyptian suspected to have coronavirus that was brought to the facility and not four.
He noted that the patient has been sent to IDH for treatment.
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