Diphtheria: Lagos Meets W.H.O., NCDC Over Outbreak in School

The Lagos State Government has summoned a meeting of critical stakeholders in the health sector as concerns rise over a suspected outbreak of diphtheria in King’s College in Lagos.

The Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Health, Dr. Kemi Ogunyemi, confirmed this to newsmen yesterday.

According to her, stakeholders, including representatives of the World Health Organization and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, met yesterday evening over the issue.

She stated that the governor would also be briefed.

Reports previously revealed that parents of students in King’s College, Lagos, were worried over news of a suspected diphtheria outbreak in the school that led to the hospitalization of some students, stating that the unsanitary condition of the school is culpable.

A parent who pleaded anonymity faulted the management of the school for its seeming silence and not swinging into action promptly in the face of the outbreak.

Reacting, the Public Relations Officer of the school’s Parents Teachers Association, Ngozi Ogbonna, called for calm, assuring that efforts were ongoing to curtail the situation, stating that the school management and PTA Exco were collaborating to address the situation.