Conference Abstract | Volume 8, Abstract ELIC2025345 (Poster 056) | Published: 01 Aug 2025
Muzzammil Sani Gadanya1, Chinedu Labluz Okoroafor1, Tochi Joy Okwor1, Obiora Peter Okafor1
1Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Abuja, Nigeria
&Corresponding author: Obiora Okafor, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Abuja, Nigeria, Email: obiora.okafor@ncdc.gov.ng
Received: 25 May 2025, Accepted: 09 Jul 2025, Published: 01 Aug 2025
Domain: Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Keywords: Healthcare workers (HCW), Infection prevention and control (IPC), Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Primary health care (PHC), Personal protective equipment (PPE)
©Muzzammil Sani Gadanya et al. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health (ISSN: 2664-2824). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Cite this article: Muzzammil Sani Gadanya et al., Lassa fever infections among healthcare workers in Nigeria: Exposure, delayed care-seeking, and IPC gaps. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health. 2025;8(ConfProc5):00200. https://doi.org/10.37432/JIEPH-CONFPRO5-00200
Nigeria faces a critical health workforce shortage, with only 1.83 skilled workers per 1,000 people, well below the WHO-recommended 4.5. Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at increased risk of Lassa fever infection, yet the drivers of nosocomial transmission remain poorly understood. HCW deaths continue to occur during outbreak seasons, highlighting the urgent need to strengthen infection prevention and control (IPC). Understanding exposure patterns and care-seeking behaviour is essential to optimizing IPC strategies and protecting the health system’s frontline.
This is a descriptive cross-sectional study using data from healthcare workers (HCWs) infected with Lassa fever in 2023 and 2024. The Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) pillar of the National Lassa Fever Technical Working Group routinely investigates RT-PCR-confirmed Lassa fever cases among HCWs using standardized case investigation forms.
A total of 60 PCR-confirmed HCW infections were investigated. Most occurred in outpatient units, accounting for 94.5%, while isolation and theatre units contributed 3.7% and 1.9%, respectively. The majority were aged 31–40 years (40.0%), with females comprising 60.0% and males 40.0%. Infections were mostly reported from tertiary facilities (70.0%), followed by PHCs (15.0%) and secondary/general hospitals (11.7%). Public facilities accounted for 78.3% of cases; private, 21.7%. Only 41.7% had IPC programmes; 51% did not use appropriate PPE during patient care, and 53.3% had no IPC training. Most HCWs (84%) could not identify their exposure source. Of the 16 (26.7%) that could, the mean interval from exposure to medical attention was 15 days; from exposure to symptom onset, 8 days; and from symptom onset to care, 6 days. Over one-third of HCWs delayed care by more than three days after symptom onset.
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