Doctor Leads Coronavirus Fight From Isolation in Nigeria

(Bloomberg) --

The epidemiologist leading the fight against the spread of the deadly coronavirus in Africa's most-populous nation is doing so from the most unlikely of places: his home.

Since returning from a mission to China last week to learn about the new virus, the head of the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, Doctor Chikwe Ihekweazu, has been working in self-isolation.

He's following his center's own advice: Nigerians who've recently traveled to countries hit by the virus should stay home for 14 days, even if they don't have any symptoms.

Revered for his success in preventing the spread in Nigeria of an Ebola epidemic that killed thousands of people in other West African countries in 2014, Ihekweazu is participating in meetings using a video-conferencing app, taking calls and texting colleagues.

“He is full at work even in isolation,” said Oreoluwa Finnih, the special health assistant to the governor of Lagos, where the first confirmed case of coronavirus in Sub-Saharan Africa was reported last week. “He is leading by example.”

A 44-year-old Italian man identified last week as the first confirmed case of coronavirus in Nigeria has been placed in isolation at a hospital in Lagos, a sprawling metropolis of 20 million people and the economic engine of the West African country.

The case has put Nigerians on alert, with thousands flocking to pharmacies that have tripled their prices for face masks and hand sanitizers. Other measures being introduced include the Catholic Church banning handshakes at Masses in Lagos.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alonso Soto in Abuja at asoto54@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Anthony Osae-Brown at aosaebrown2@bloomberg.net, Paul Richardson, John Viljoen

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