7th November, 2012
At least 2,806 patients were admitted at the Snake Bite Treatment and Research Centre, Kaltungo, Gombe State from January to November, 2012.
The Medical Officer in Charge of the Centre, Dr Habu Ballah, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaltungo on Tuesday.
He said of the figure 33 patients died owing to the delay in reaching the centre, while four others died on arrival at the centre.
Dr Ballah recalled that 316 patients attended the centre in 2011, saying the existing figure was higher owing to factors such as flooding, lack of awareness of treatment at the centre and increase in farming activities.
He said apart from the state, patients were brought from Taraba, Plateau, Bauchi, Adamawa, Jigawa, Kano, Yobe and even Cameroun.
“Last year, we recorded about 316 patients, but this year we are going to have more than that.
“The increase is due to awareness on the part of the patients on the services here, flooding that took place this year which made the snakes to be in the land and the engagements in the farms as civil servants engaged in farming,” he said. According to him, in the six days of November we so far have about 90 patients and the increase is due to harvesting and flooding.
He said before this month, an average of 12 patients were brought to the centre daily, but added that the figure increased to 19 because of harvesting season and flooding.
Ballah advised people in the snake infested areas to wear boots and gloves when working in the nights, leave markets and farms early as the snakes start coming out from 6.30 p.m.
He commended women in Kaltungo for building and donating a ward at the centre.
He commended the Rotary Club of Greenwich, England, for providing 70 vials of drugs and some philanthropists in the state who donated drugs, mattresses as well as the 11 Local Governments in the state which gave N5.5 million worth of drugs.