A public health expert, Mrs Funmilola Taylor, says there is no cholera outbreak in Ibadan as being insinuated, urging members of the public to maintain proper hygiene.
Taylor, a public health nurse at Oni and Sons Hospital in Ibadan and desk officer for surveillance, stated this in an interview on Friday.
Although she confirmed the reported cases of five patients with acute diarrhea in Ibadan, she, however, said that the WhatsApp message being widely circulated on cholera outbreak was not true.
Taylor said that a case of cholera was brought to Oni and Sons but was referred to University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, due to lack of bed space.
The public health nurse, however, urged people of the city to practise proper hygiene, such as regular hand washing and cleaning of environment, saying this would prevent them from contracting diseases.
She said: “Diarrhea is different from cholera and it is acute diarrhea that my other colleagues have seen in other local governments.
“We have not seen any case of cholera. We will just advise people on proper hygiene and cleanliness.
“But if there is anybody with any case of stooling, such a person should go to the hospital and not do self-medication.
“The person should go and see a doctor to ascertain the kind of stooling it is and he/she will be treated immediately,”
A WhatsApp message raising the alarm on a purported outbreak of cholera within Ibadan metropolis had gone viral on Friday, thus causing panic in some communities and schools.
