COVID-19: No private hospital has been given approval for treatment - Health Minister says

Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire has said that no private hospital has been given approval for Coronavirus treatment.



The Minister who disclosed this at the daily briefing by Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 in Abuja on Friday April 17, said that some private hospitals that have shown interest to treat the virus have not met the criteria to receive approval yet.



Ehanire said;


“No accredited private hospital has been given approval in Abuja. Lagos is looking at some accredited hospitals. There’s one large hospital in Lagos that has called me and said they want to become a coronavirus treatment centre.

“The structure of the hospital is that they are ready to remove all present patients they have and do nothing but Coronavirus treatment. That would be good because they don’t stand the chance of cross-infection.

“But, at the moment, there is no hospital that has met the criteria.

“Treating of private patients is not allowed. It is risky. Coronavirus is one of the most easily transmitted diseases you can think of. So, it is not allowed to treat Coronavirus privately."



The Minister of Health also revealed that there are major guidelines that need to be adhered to for a hospital to be able to successfully handle COVID-19, as treating of COVID-19 patients privately is risky.



He added;



“If you are a private person and you want to run a treatment centre, you have to show that you have the staff. The doctor must be an infectious disease specialist.

“You need nurses and even cleaners that are trained because the handling of this hospital is different from ordinary hospitals. They must be trained in infection control professional protocols. The hospital must be properly ventilated.


“You have to have inspection by a team of accreditors that will give you go ahead.”