600 new COVID-19 cases, total now 35,454 as 200 FCT Nurses infected

Nigeria recorded 600 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, bringing total confirmed cases to 35,454.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control made this known via its Twitter handle on Friday night.

The health agency says “On the 17th of July 2020, 600 new confirmed cases and 3 deaths were recorded in Nigeria. No new state has reported a case in the last 24 hours.

“Till date, 35454 cases have been confirmed, 14633 cases have been discharged and 772 deaths have been recorded in 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

“The 600 new cases are reported from 20 states; Lagos-129, FCT-118, Oyo-87, Kano-55, Benue-42, Enugu-35, Kwara-28, Imo-16, Ogun-13, Kaduna-12, Ondo-12, Delta-11, Edo-11, Plateau-8, Nasarawa-6, Ekiti-6, Niger-6, Borno-4, Abia-4, Gombe-3,” the NCDC said.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Association of Nurses and Midwifery on Friday announced that over 200 nurses in the various medical facilities in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have contracted COVID-19.

The revelation was made public by the association’s Chairperson, Deborah Yusufu during her interaction with the leadership of the Nigerian Union of Journalists who was at the Secretariat in Abuja to make donations of Personnel Protective Equipments (PPEs) to them.

According to Yusufu, Nigerian nurses are at the frontline of battling the COVID-19 pandemic because of their duties which make them most exposed among medical personnel in the various healthcare facility across the world and in the case Nigeria.

She said out of the affected 200 nurses, some 12 others have recovered and have been out of isolation,

“Everybody must take responsibility, it is going to be a collective responsibility on the part of all of us. Honestly, on behalf of all the nurses and midwives in the FCT, we are saying a very big thank you because of your magnanimity towards your member to prevent them from getting infected.

“As I’m standing here. We have plus 200 nurses exposed. So far about 12 have recovered and some as I am talking to you now, some are still in the isolation and fitness centre received treatment.

“Then, the most amazing thing is that those that are most affected are not those that are working in the isolation centre.

“That is why I’m so glad you brought these items because you are not taking them to isolation centres. We are taking them to the facilities, the other hospitals the other unit.

“Because number one of those that are in the solution centres have been trained already. They know the kind of enemy they are fighting with. So, any time they are coming to see any patient. They are work alert. And they put on their personal protective equipment but those in the facilities are attending to people with all manner of healthcare needs,” Yusufu stated.

The breakdown of the 35,454 caseload is highlighted below: