The Nigerian Military Public Health Response to COVID-19: A 14-Month Appraisal.

Content Provider	Europe PMC
Author	Ayemoba, Ojor Adekanye, Usman Iroezindu, Michael Onoh, Ikenna Lawal, Ismail Suleiman, Aminu Joshua, Samuel Ogundeji, Amos Adamu, Yakubu Ugandem-Okonkwo, Dooshima Owolabi, Funmilayo Atang, Mary Nwagbara, Goodluck Musa, Yaya Odeyemi, Sunday Amosu, Abiodun Okoye, Ifeanyi Ahmed, Yusuf Nalazai, Joshua Elayo, Zubairu Adelanwa, Taiwo Monday, Thomas Bloom, Eddie Benyeogor, Emmanuel Chittenden, Laura Okeji, Nathan
Copyright Year	2022
Abstract	The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant morbidity and mortality since its emergence in December 2019. In Nigeria, the government inaugurated the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to coordinate resources while the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control led the public health response. The Nigeria Ministry of Defence Health Implementation Programme (MODHIP), in partnership with the US Army Medical Research Directorate – Africa/Nigeria, responded immediately to the pandemic by establishing a public health emergency operations center to coordinate the military response in support of national efforts. MODHIP has 5 functional units and 6 pillars that coordinate testing, surveillance, case management, risk communication, logistics, research, and infection prevention and control. It developed an incident action plan and each pillar had its own terms of reference to guide specific response activities while preventing duplication of efforts within the military and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control. In addition, awareness and sensitization sessions were conducted on preventive practices for COVID-19 and infrastructure was provided for hand hygiene and screening at all military facilities. Military laboratories were configured for SARS-CoV-2 testing while selected military health facilities were equipped and designated as COVID-19 treatment centers. Research proposals aimed at better understanding the disease and controlling it were also developed. The traditional combat role of the military was redirected to complement this public health emergency response. In this article, we highlight gaps, opportunities, and lessons to improve military participation in public health emergency response in the future. More funding and multisectoral collaboration with civilian institutions are key to strengthening military public health emergency preparedness and response capabilities.
Related Links	https://europepmc.org/backend/ptpmcrender.fcgi?accid=PMC10818039&blobtype=pdf
Page Count	9
ISSN	23265094
Volume Number	20
DOI	10.1089/hs.2021.0143
PubMed Central reference number	PMC10818039
Issue Number	3
PubMed reference number	35613403
Journal	Health Security [Health Secur]
e-ISSN	23265108
Language	English
Publisher	Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers
Publisher Date	2022-05-25
Publisher Place	USA
Access Restriction	Open
Rights License	This Open Access article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. © Ojor Ayemoba et al., 2022; Published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.
Subject Keyword	COVID-19 Epidemic management/response Public health preparedness/response
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Emergency Medicine Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health Health (social science) Safety Research Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law