…warns that Nigeria cannot continue to be unprepared over emergencies

The Intensive and Critical Care Society of Nigeria (ICCSN) has called on the Federal Government to prioritise the upgrading and equipping of intensive care units (ICUs) in public hospitals, describing the recent Ebola Virus Disease incident as a wake-up call to strengthen the country’s health security.

The society, in a statement on Sunday signed by its President, Prof. Otokwala Job Gogo, and Secretary, Dr. Paul Ufoegbunam, expressed concern over the deplorable state of ICUs in most public tertiary hospitals across the country.

It said many of the facilities lacked basic life-support equipment, including functional ventilators, multiparameter monitors, infusion pumps, dialysis machines and essential critical care medications, while manpower remained inadequate.

According to the society, severe Ebola Virus Disease can cause life-threatening complications, including acute respiratory failure, septic shock, acute kidney injury, blood-clotting disorders and multiple organ failure.

It stressed that such complications could not be managed in isolation wards alone but required fully equipped ICUs staffed by trained intensive care physicians, critical care nurses and other relevant professionals.

“Without functional ICUs, we risk losing patients not directly to the virus itself, but to treatable organ failure,” the society said.

To address the gaps, ICCSN urged the Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, to use the Ebola incident as an opportunity to comprehensively equip and upgrade ICUs in all federal tertiary hospitals.

It also called for dedicated funding for critical care equipment, consumables and infrastructure maintenance, as well as investment in the recruitment, retention and continuous training of intensive care physicians, nurses and biomedical engineers.

The society further advocated the establishment of a National Critical Care Support Network to facilitate the rapid deployment of expertise and equipment during disease outbreaks and other public health emergencies.

It noted that strengthening ICUs would not only improve survival rates among Ebola patients but also enhance the country’s capacity to manage other life-threatening conditions, including severe sepsis, trauma, stroke, obstetric emergencies and post-operative complications.

While commending the Federal Government, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and frontline health workers for their response to containing the outbreak, ICCSN said the incident had once again exposed the vulnerability of Nigeria’s critical care infrastructure.

The society expressed its readiness to partner with the government by providing technical guidance on ICU standards, equipment specifications and training.

It warned that Nigeria could not afford to remain unprepared for future public health emergencies.