Diphtheria: Katsina hospital overwhelmed as officials withhold case and death figures

The children’s ward at Federal Teaching Hospital Katsina is struggling to accommodate an influx of suspected and confirmed diphtheria cases, while authorities have yet to disclose the scale of the outbreak in the state.

The hospital said patients were arriving from health facilities across Katsina, creating severe overcrowding and putting pressure on available beds. It did not say how many children were currently admitted or provide figures for laboratory-confirmed infections and deaths.

“The hospital is making every possible arrangement to accommodate and manage the increasing number of patients, even in the absence of sufficient bed spaces,” the hospital said. It added that healthcare workers continued to treat critically ill children despite the pressure on the paediatric ward.

The federal government has activated an emergency task force involving the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, affected state governments and development partners. The task force is expected to strengthen outbreak investigations and surveillance, intensify immunisation and expand access to treatment.

The government said 500,000 vaccine doses had been sent to Katsina and Kano for intensified immunisation in affected and at-risk communities, but it did not specify how many doses went to Katsina. It also directed the deployment of diphtheria antitoxin, intravenous antibiotics, more clinical staff and personal protective equipment to the Katsina hospital.

Treatment annexes are planned in the state’s three senatorial zones, covering Katsina, Daura and Funtua. Officials have not published their locations, bed capacities or operating status. The vaccination status of affected children and a local breakdown of cases and deaths also remain undisclosed.

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The hospital is making every possible arrangement to accommodate and manage the increasing number of patients, even in the absence of sufficient bed spaces.