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The Federal Teaching Hospital in Katsina is struggling to cope with a surge in diphtheria patients, with only one nurse attending to at least 35 children at the facility, a News Central TV reporter said on Sunday.
Diphtheria is a serious bacterial infection caused by toxin-producing strains of Corynebacterium diphtheriae. The bacteria spread through respiratory droplets from coughing or sneezing and through contact with infected skin lesions.
News Central TV‘s correspondent Rukaiya Jibia, who visited the centre, described the situation as “very, very serious.”
“I went into the centre and I saw only one nurse, with at least 33 to 35 patients, lying helplessly, waiting for treatment,” Jibia said.
She said at least 35 children were receiving treatment in the centre she visited.
Jibia added that more patients were still arriving.
“When we went there, I can see that a lot of cars are just parking at the parking lot, which I know they are bringing in more patients,” she said.
According to Jibia, a nurse at the facility confirmed that the centre was too small for the number of patients and that arrangements were being made for a bigger facility.
The nurse also complained that health workers were working “endlessly, tirelessly, to see that these children get home.”
The hospital management said on Saturday that the continuous influx of patients referred from health facilities across the state had resulted in severe overcrowding, leaving available bed spaces overstretched.
“The hospital is making every possible arrangement to accommodate and manage the increasing number of patients, even in the absence of sufficient bed spaces,” the statement noted.
