Protection of elders, children from COVID-19

This is a clarion call for intensive and prioritized preventive measures for the protection of elders and children against coronavirus pandemic. More needs to be done in protection of elders and as a follow up to the shutting of schools. Now that schools are shut, what next, how do we ensure that our children remain […]

This is a clarion call for intensive and prioritized preventive measures for the protection of elders and children against coronavirus pandemic.

More needs to be done in protection of elders and as a follow up to the shutting of schools. Now that schools are shut, what next, how do we ensure that our children remain protected from the virus as well as older people who are believed to be easily infected by the virus?

Government needs to make provision not only for building of old people’s homes and centres but regular and adequate care for them any wherever they are.

We therefore urge proper equipment of isolation centres suitable to address peculiar health challenges of elders and children and further advise healthcare providers to desist from all forms stigmatization and discrimination against suspected coronavirus patients especially older people to avert a reoccurrence of avoidable deaths.

We also reiterate the need for a prioritised healthcare attention for older peoples, as ageism is susceptible to the virus and since it has been evidently proven that older people are at the risk of contracting it than others, more needed to be done to prevent it.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), elders are said to susceptible to the coronavirus

Sen. Eze Ajoku,  President, Coalition of Societies for the Rights of Older People in Nigeria (COSROPIN)