Health officials in Switzerland have confirmed the arrival of a Swiss national diagnosed with Ebola Virus Disease who was medically evacuated from Nigeria, alongside her husband who has been placed in preventive isolation.
The female patient, who serves as Nigeria’s index case following travel to Uganda earlier this month, is currently undergoing specialized treatment at Geneva University Hospitals. Her spouse, identified as one of the primary contacts tracked by Nigerian epidemiological teams, was admitted into isolation at University Hospital Zurich as a precautionary protocol.
Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, confirmed the successful air transport following high-level diplomatic and medical coordination involving the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), and the World Health Organization (WHO).
In a official statement, Swiss Federal Councillor Elisabeth Baume-Schneider commended Nigerian healthcare workers and public health officials for delivering swift clinical management to the couple prior to their airlift. Swiss public health authorities assured the public that the evacuation poses no safety threat to the Swiss population, noting both medical facilities possess specialized high-level isolation wards.
Following the airlift of the index patient, health officials noted that Nigeria currently retains no active, confirmed clinical Ebola cases within its borders. However, local contact tracing operations remain active, with health surveillance teams continually monitoring 52 primary contacts in the Federal Capital Territory and surrounding areas to prevent secondary transmission chains.
Health officials indicated that if no secondary cases emerge during the mandatory 42-day surveillance window, Nigeria could be declared free of the virus by early December.
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