A patient receiving medical care for monkey pox at the quarantine centre in Bayelsa State, Nigeria has committed suicide, the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Ebitimitula Etebu has said.
While addressing a press conference in Yenagoa, Etebu said the deceased was among the 21 suspected cases of monkey pox that were being managed at the Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH).
Etebu was joined by the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Daniel Iworiso-Markson, the Chief Medical Director of the NDUH and other senior health officials.
He expressed regret that the patient took his own life despite speedily recovering from the disease and stated that his medical history did not suggest any mental illness or features of depression.
The Health Commissioner maintained that the patient did not die from the disease, adding that the Police and his family have been duly informed and all due diligence was being followed for the eventual respectful and safe burial.
Sympathising with the family, the Commissioner informed them that a committee had been put in place to evaluate the victim’s past and recent clinical and social history to determine “if there were undisclosed mental illness or personal family problem that could have justified the suicide.”
Meanwhile Etebu has confirmed that monkey pox is in the state following laboratory evidence which now puts to rest the earlier suspicion of the disease.
He however assured the general public that the government was doing everything to contain the outbreak and ensure all patients received appropriate care and treatment.
On his part, Iworiso-Markson urged residents to continue to use preventive measures and ensure they avoid ‘bush meat’ and other causes of the disease.