The Nigeria Medical Association, NMA, yesterday, urged Nigerians to remain vigilant inspite of Monday's certification of Nigeria as Ebola-free by the World Health Organisation.
WHO had declared Nigeria Ebola-free after the country had not recorded any new case of the disease for two incubation periods of 21 days.
But Dr Muideen Olatunji, the Chairman of the NMA in Oyo State, said in Ibadan that Nigerians should be cautious in jubilating over the new status of the country.
His words: "This is a period that all stake-holders should be at alert and improve on our health hygiene.
"We in the health sector should increase our surveillance of Ebola suspects. We should improve our active surveillance system and alert management system."
"Standard precautions should be applied routinely to all patients in hospitals, "he said.
The Oyo State Epidemiologist, Dr Abbas Gbolahan, said government would continue to ensure border coordination between Osun, Ogun and Kwara.
" The Oyo State Ministry of Health would still maintain its collaboration with WHO, UNICEF and other health institutions in the state.
"We would continue with public enlightenment on causes, mode of transmission and what to do during outbreaks," he said.
Prof. Temitope Alonge, the Chief Medical Director of the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, said the WHO declaration was a signal that all health institutions should remain alert.
"The declaration means we should intensify efforts to continue the curtailment of not only Ebola but all hemorrhagic diseases in the state.
"Plans are in the pipeline to construct an isolation centre at the UCH Comprehensive Health Centre in Sepeteri as part of preparatory efforts to curtail viral diseases coming in from Oyo North in the future," he said.
Alonge said the curtailment of the disease was possible through the combined efforts of the state government, health institutions, the media as well as the people.
A cleric, Pastor Dolapo Adelakun, said the WHO declaration " was the hand of God on Nigeria."
Adelakun, who is of Victory International Church Cathedral, Oluyole, said Christians in the state had been holding regular prayers over the dreaded disease.
Alhaji Muri Adegunwa, a representative of the Muslim community at UCH, said Muslims were fervent in prayers to tackle the disease.
He said the UCH mosque dedicated a lot of time to prayers throughout the Ramadan in order to halt the spread of the disease.
Mr Adeola Madegun, a 35-year-old teacher at Oluyole Community Grammar School, Ibadan, told NAN that all the three tiers of government should be commended for tackling the Ebola challenge.
Madegun, however, advised the Federal Government to immortalise all those who died in the attempt to curtail the spread of the disease.
Meantime, Marie Kieny, Head of Health Information of WHO, said Ebola drug trials and collection of survivors' blood for treating patients would get underway in West Africa within weeks.
Kieny said in Geneva yesterday that WHO and partner organisations were currently selecting treatment centres in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone to conduct trials of experimental Ebola drugs.
Kieny said as advised by WHO and international experts, drug companies had been working to fast-track Ebola drugs and vaccines development by testing them directly in West Africa.
She said work was under-way in Liberia to set up a blood collection centre for Ebola survivors in the coming weeks.
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