To promote healthy living in the society, the Gender Issues and Youth Development (GIYD) Programme, Agricultural Media Resources and Extension Centre (AMREC) recently organised a Capacity Building Training titled, “Entrepreneur and His Health”, in collaboration with the Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Parasitology, College of Veterinary Medicine (COLVET) and the Centre for Entrepreneurial Studies (CENTS) of the University. Speaking on the topic, “Awareness, Stigmatisation and Management of Transmission of Ebola Virus”, 
Dr. Oluwole Olufemi, Acting Head, Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Parasitology of COLVET, took the participants through the historical background to the Ebola Virus Disease in terms of its outbreak, biology, transmission, infection, laboratory diagnosis and treatment. According to Dr. Olufemi, the first outbreak of Ebola was recorded in 1967, when there was a simultaneous outbreak of the haemorrhagic fever in Marburg, Frankfurt, Germany, Belgrade and Yugoslavia among laboratory workers engaged in the processing of kidneys for cell culture production of Polio vaccine from African green monkeys, which was imported from Uganda.
He added that the virus disappeared from the news until 1975 when three cases were reported in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1980 and when an index case died in Nairobi, Kenya in 1989. He said presently, there were about five identified subspecies of Ebola virus namely: Ebola-Zaire, Ebola-Sudan, Ebola Ivory Coast, Bundibugyo virus and Bundibugyo ebola virus. He said the natural reservoir of EVDs has not yet been proven and no appropriate treatment was certain, as he advised participants to avoid contacts with the fluid of an infected person or animal.
Corroborating Dr. Olufemi, the Programme Leader of GIYD, Dr. Elizabeth Oluwalana, while presenting her paper titled, “Wellness and Wealth Creation through Herbal Remedies: A Panacea For Management of Ebola Virus among the Entrepreneurs”, charged the participants to always maintain good hygiene wherever they find themselves, adding that as entrepreneurs, they should make themselves available for continuous training because knowledge is power. She also advised them to be wary of travelling to Ebola endemic areas. Dr. (Mrs.) Oluwalana called on stakeholders to make adequate provision for health infrastructure and ensuring rapid diagnosis of infections, effective quarantine measures, control and prevention of further spread of the virus. Present at the training were the Director of CENTS, Prof. Femi Onifade; President, Rotary Club of Sagamu Central District, Rotarian
Bisola Asaye, among other dignitaries.
Last Updated on December 16, 2014 by admin
