Thousands of Nigerians admitted into United Kingdom universities appear sure to face tough health screening as their campuses have been placed on the alert for the danger posed by the Ebola Virus Disease.
While the three countries which have seen the largest number of Ebola cases – Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone – have hardly any students enrolling at UK universities, Nigeria – which has also had confirmed cases – is the fourth largest supplier of international students to UK universities.
A spokesman for the body said, “The issue is very much on universities’ radars. We circulated to universities the publicly available guidance on the topic.”
The guidance makes it clear that any student suspected of having Ebola should immediately be isolated in a side room away from any member of staff or student contact.
“The side room should have dedicated en-suite facilities or at least a dedicated commode,” it says. “The level of staff protection is dependent on the patient’s condition,” the London-based newspaper newspaper said.
It added that “those having any dealings with the patient must take careful hand hygiene precautions, wearing double gloves and a disposable visor.