Nsawam Ebola test proves negative
Tests for the suspected deadly Ebola virus on a patient who reported at the Nsawam Government Hospital in the Eastern region have proved negative.
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The tests were undertaken by the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR).
Three persons reported at the hospital at the weekend with symptoms of the dreaded Ebola disease.
The doctors after screening them were convinced that two of the cases were not Ebola related but they sent blood samples of the third patient to Noguchi in Accra for the necessary tests.
In a radio interview (Peace FM) Monday morning, Dr Kofi Ablorh, the Medical Superintendent of the Nsawam Government Hospital said the tests have proved negative.
He called for calm and advised the public not to panic as no case of Ebola has been recorded at the hospital.
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The victims who reported at the Nsawam hospital at the weekend were said to be a 16-year-old girl, a 56-year-old man and a 53-year-old driver, all of whom reported at the hospital with blood in their urine, reports Edmund Smith Asante.
The driver, who reported with a fever, however, had blood in his faeces.
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Dr Kofi Ablorh explained to the Daily Graphic that out of the three patients, only one was isolated for further tests and observations.
He said the other two did not have a history that supported the likelihood of an Ebola infection which would necessitate their being set apart.
“The other two have been excluded because they have other issues which have got nothing to do with Ebola. The travel history does not support it,” he said.
Dr Ablorh explained that if, for instance, a patient reported with a history of two weeks of excessive coughing, he or she would be screened for tuberculosis, which did not mean the patient had that disease.
He said if the cases had come last year, they would not have been news because there was no Ebola.
According to the medical superintendent, people who report at health facilities with blood in their urine have to be screened because “the index of suspicion is high (which is good) and, therefore, we need to make sure that we don’t get it”.
He said the patient who had been kept in isolation was doing well, adding that the hospital was equipped to deal with any eventuality.
Writer's email: enoch.frimpong@graphic.com.gh