Switzerland has confirmed receiving Nigeria’s index Ebola patient and her husband, who accompanied her during the medical evacuation, with the man placed in isolation as a close contact.
The Federal Government evacuated the 42-year-old woman to Switzerland on Monday aboard a medical aircraft after she was diagnosed with the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola virus disease.
Ali Pate, the coordinating minister of health and social welfare, said the patient’s condition had improved significantly. He described her as stable, conscious and able to communicate, adding that her laboratory test results were approaching baseline levels.
In a statement issued on Monday, the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) said the woman was receiving treatment at Geneva University Hospital (HUG), while her husband was being isolated at Zurich University Hospital (USZ).
The Swiss authorities said the case posed no public health risk to the country. They added that both hospitals had the facilities and expertise required to treat patients with infectious diseases such as Ebola while protecting healthcare workers and other patients.
According to the authorities, the hospitals have specialised isolation wards and trained medical personnel to manage such infections.
“The current situation does not pose any risk to public health in Switzerland,” the FOPH said.
The agency added that it was working with the university hospitals in Geneva and Zurich, alongside the relevant cantonal authorities, to manage the situation.
Switzerland’s federal councillor, Elisabeth Baume-Schneider, expressed appreciation to Nigeria’s health minister during a telephone conversation.
Baume-Schneider thanked the doctors and other healthcare professionals in Nigeria for caring for the two Swiss nationals before their evacuation. She also commended the Nigerian government and the World Health Organisation (WHO) for their cooperation in facilitating the transfer.
In response, Pate thanked the clinical and public health teams in Nigeria and Switzerland, as well as the WHO team in Nigeria, for their collaboration.
He said contact monitoring, the investigation of alerts and other containment measures were continuing in Nigeria, while wishing the patient a continued recovery.