The Nasarawa State Government has set up hepatitis vaccination centres in general hospitals and Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) to curtail the burden of the disease.
Dr Jenet Angbazo, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, made the disclosure at an event to commemorate the 2023 World Hepatitis Day (WHD) on Monday, July 31, 2023 in Lafia. WHD is annually celebrated on July 28 to raise awareness about the disease, which mainly affects the liver.
The theme of this year’s WHD is “we are not waiting, one life, and one liver.” According to the permanent secretary, the burden of hepatitis in Nasarawa State has surpassed the national average.
She explained that because of the determination to tackle its prevalence, Gov. Abdullahi Sule approved a five-year elimination plan “to treat approximately 124, 000 individuals within the next five years.
“The state government, with support from the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHI), created an enabling environment to facilitate access to diagnosis and treatment for infected persons.”
Angbazo further said that since the collaboration with CHI, significant progress had been made toward tackling the menace. She said that 97 healthcare workers across 17 facilities in Awe, Keana and Doma local government areas have been trained.
She added that “micro elimination of the disease had been achieved in the 17 facilities of the mentioned local government areas.
“Also, 13 other facilities in Uke in Karu Local Government Area, as well as in Obi and Wamba are on track to achieving micro elimination soon.”
The permanent secretary explained that the state had screened a total of 229,682 individuals and 23,224 tested positive for the disease. She also said that 5,096 persons have been assessed for viraemia and 2,697 found viraemic and 2,587 individuals have been put on treatment with so many certified cured.
She, therefore, commended stakeholders and partners, including the media, for the efforts in educating the public on the need to make themselves available for testing, treatment and vaccination.