Health
Progress As Ministry, UNICEF Celebrate Child Health Week In Rivers
The Rivers State Ministry of Health in collaboration with United Nation Children’s Fund (UNICEF) (A field Zone) flagged off the Child Health Week on Saturday May 22, 2010 at Bunu Nonwa in Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The sensitisation exercise took off with a rally from Nonwa Market square involving other villages in the local government Kpite, Kira, Tua Tua, Koroma and others.
An intensive campaign was carried out on maternal, new born and child health eradication of polio in Nigeria, immunisation of women of child bearing age (15-49) years.
Basic message advised adn encouraged women to space for at least two years before getting another baby, and that every child needs immunisation to protect them against diseases that growth disability or death. For example, every child bearing woman needs to be protected against Tetanus.
The message further revealed that a child with diarrhea needs to drink plenty of breast milk, fruit juice or oral dehydration salt (ORS).
Delivering a speech on behalf of the Health Commissioner, the Director of Primary Healthcare, Dr. Akuro Okujagu intimated the crowd that safe motherhood day reflected the degree of respect and regard for women and children right in the society which he declared as an annual event celebrated world-wide every May 22.
He also said that more than 75 per cent population of the state live in the rural communities and one of the ways of reaching out to them is through sensitisation programme organised on safe motherhood celebration like this.
Emphatically, Dr. Okujagu contended that safe motherhood will be understood and embraced by the people. Packages of life saving health services like focused ANC clean and safe deliveries, new born care, post natal care, family planning, immunisation, vitamin A administration, de-worming exercise, breast feeding and complementary breast feeding, personal and environmental hygiene etc. all these are with the ultimate objective to achieve the vision of safe motherhood.
Finally, Dr. Akuro Okujagu said that no woman going through pregnancy and child birth should suffer any injury or loose her life or that of the baby. “That is why this year’s Motherhood Day Celebration started with a rally, it is indeed special.” More lives are touched in many ways leading to a happy and healthy living subsequently reducing marternal and under five mortality by 75% and 66% respectively by 2015. This is in line with the 4th/5th MGDs and everyone is encouraged to embrace the various activities.
In his contribution UNICEF polio representative, Mr. Stan Osum lamented the increasing rate of infant and maternal mortalities in recent years in Nigeria. He regretted that most children are now vulnerable to disease while one in every pregnant woman dies before child birth.
Osum stressed the need for constant vaccination of children against polio among other related diseases such as measles, tuberculosis, yellow fever and others. Mothers should be vaccinated against tetanus infection and other diseases.
Ministry representative, Mr. Stan Osum also urged communities to join hands with health workers and voluntary organisations such as UNICEF to ensure the success of immunisation in their areas.
In his speech, the chairman of Tai Local Government, Mr. Barry Mpigi thanked the state Government for choosing Tai Local Government for the flag off ceremony. Mpigi was represented by his Vice chairman Sylva Ngbu, who warned against premature sex.
The event attracted peoples from all walks of life. Tai Local Government featured traditional dances from the youths and other cultural display.
Monitoring the celebration of child health week safe motherhooh, maternal, new born, eradication of polio etc. UNICEF (A Field Zone), the Rivers State Co-ordinator with a team of journalists moved to seven local governments of Rivers State to see how they are fairing concerning the sensitisation programme of safe motherhood, child health week.
Local governments visited are Khana Local Government, Comprehensive Health Centre, Bori, where two hundred mothers were attended to and given mosquito nets as well as with Vitamin A. Awareness was much their challenge.
In Gokana Local Government, journalists went into their health centres women were also in attendance with their children. Attendance okay. They were also given deworming drugs, Vitamins A and mosquito nets before them moved to Okrika Local Government visited Ibaka Health Centre, where over one thousand children attended.
Administration of Vitamin A, DPT, OPB, BCG measles, yellow fever tablets also took place.
According to Mrs. Ibifuro Elfrida a technician, the team moved to neigbouring communities to create awareness. Generally, the people around these community are poor, but the response was fair.
The team moved to Oyigbo Local Government and visited Comprehensive Health Centre, Oyigbo, met Chief Nursing Officer, Mrs. Ake Alice Amachree, who disclosed that one hundred and one children came and drugs were administered to them. One hundred mothers also came and were attended to. Response was good.
Challenges facing the health centre include the fact that the Health Centre was yet to be equipped. No funding. Only UNICEF and other agencies are helping out. At Asalga Local Government, Buguma, Sister Daba Peter Kio, Deputy Director Community Health Officer in charge of Buguma Health Centre intimated the team no proper arrangement was made as a result the Child Health Day took off late and no drugs for the programme because of some problems in the local government. Mothers and children were however seen without administration of drugs some mothers left as a result of the fact that there were no drugs.
Finally, the team arrived at Abua Odual Local Government and went to Ayama Health Centre.
Sister Elizatbeth Adoki who received the team and remarked that the turnout was great and mothers with their children were given necessary drugs de-worming tablets, mosquito nets Vitamin A etc.
She revealed that this year’s health week the women responded very well. Mrs. Adoki disclosed that she left to Omakwa, Amake and Otari villages in the local government to intimate the women on the need of safe motherhood and to space children in other to avoid loosing their life and that of babies.
The exercise was a success.
Julie Jumbo
Health
Taraba Confirms Lassa Fever Outbreak
The authorities in Taraba State Ministry of Health yesterday confirmed the outbreak of Lassa Fever in the State.
Making the confirmation in an interview, State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Gbangsheya Buma disclosed that out of the nine suspected cases that were recorded last Friday, eight turned out positive for the viral haemorrhagic fever.
Buma stated that the state Ministry of Health is closely monitoring the situation in collaboration with the Nigeria Center for Disease Control, NCDC, and the Federal Medical Center, Jalingo, FMC, authorities to contain the spread of the disease.
“It is not a surprising thing, this is the season, and we have made preparations, though the outbreak may be overwhelming.
“I just received support from NCDC; they have sent some people here to provide technical support with the aim of stopping the progress of the disease.
“We are actually on top of it. We have provided support as a state to the FMC to provide free treatment to patients of Lassa fever,” he said.
Acting Head of Clinical Services at FMC Jalingo, Joseph Kuni, provided further insight on the outbreak, revealing that the center currently has ten patients in its isolation ward, with some awaiting test results.
Kuni said, “From January to February, the center had recorded 19 deaths from the isolation center.
“From January to February, we sent 105 samples, and 60 of them came out positive for Lassa Fever while 39 came out negative. The remaining ones are still being awaited.”
He explained that due to a fire outbreak that affected the modular laboratory last year, the center cannot perform tests locally, so they send samples to Bauchi or Abuja for testing.
Additionally, Kuni confirmed that one medical doctor from the hospital was affected but has since been treated and discharged.
Kuni emphasised the need for more assistance considering the alarming number of cases, particularly from the central part of the state.
Warning that Lassa Fever is endemic in Nigeria, Kuni said with sporadic outbreaks occurring primarily during the dry season, and it is transmitted to humans through contact with contaminated food or household items.
Health
Experts Warn On Excess Consumption Of Sweetened Beverages
Drinking two litres or more per week of artificially sweetened beverages — the equivalent of a medium-sized fast-food diet soda a day — raises the risk of an irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation by 20 percent when compared to people who drank none, a new study found.
Known as A-fib, atrial fibrillation is an irregular heartbeat often described by many people who have it as a “quiver,” “flutter” or “flip-flop” of the heart in the chest.
Drinking a similar number of added-sugar beverages raised the risk of the condition by 10 percent, while drinking about four ounces of pure, unsweetened juices, such as orange or vegetable juice, was associated with an 8 percent lower risk of atrial fibrillation, the study found.
“This is the first study to report an association between no- and low-calorie sweeteners and also sugar-sweetened beverages and increased risk of atrial fibrillation,” said Penny Kris-Etherton, a professor emeritus of nutritional sciences at the Pennsylvania State University, in a statement. She was not involved in the new study.
While the study could only show an association between sweetened drinks and A-fib, the relationship remained after accounting for any genetic susceptibility to the condition. A 2017 study found people with European ancestry had about a 22 percent risk of inheriting the condition.
This heart condition may affect one in four women after menopause, the study further reveals”We still need more research on these beverages to confirm these findings and to fully understand all the health consequences on heart disease and other health conditions,” Kris-Etherton said.
“In the meantime, water is the best choice, and, based on this study, no- and low-calorie sweetened beverages should be limited or avoided,” she added.
Atrial fibrillation is dangerous and on the rise and is the leading cause of stroke in the United States. In addition, strokes connected to A-fib tend to be “more severe than strokes with other underlying causes,” according to the united states centre for Disease Control and Prevention.
Atrial fibrillation can also lead to blood clots, heart failure and “can increase the risk for heart attack, for dementia, for kidney disease. All of those things are likely long term risks,” Dr. Gregory Marcus, Professor of Medicine at University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine and associate chief of cardiology for research at UCSF Health, told The Tide’s in an interview.
Health
Ogun Seals College’s Nursing Department Over Illegal Operations
The Nursing Department of the Harvarde College of Science Business and Management Studies in Abeokuta has been shut.
The department was sealed yesterday for operating without accreditation from the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN).
The enforcement team comprised officials of enforcement team of the Ogun Ministry of Health and members of the State Nursing and Midwifery Committee (SNMC).
Speaking during the enforcement exercise, the Permanent Secretary, Ogun Ministry of Health, Dr Kayode Oladehinde, said that the private institution had been offering a degree programme in Nursing Sciences.
He added that this had been going on for about six years without accreditation from the regulatory body.
Oladehinde, represented by the Acting Director of Nursing Services, Mrs Serifat Aminu, said that such unauthorised programme contributed to quackery in nursing and posed a threat to public health.
According to him, the nursing department of the institution will remain sealed until fully accredited.
He described a degree in Nursing obtained from Harvarde College and similar institutions without NMCN accreditation as worthless, stating that graduates would be unable to obtain a valid license to practice in Nigeria and other parts of the world.
“We have discovered that many institutions, including Harvarde College, offer nursing degrees to unsuspecting students.
“Our mission is to clamp down on such institutions because they end up producing quacks in the nursing profession.
“This is dangerous for society. Unfortunately, most students are unaware that their time is being wasted,” he said.
The permanent secretary advised parents and candidates desiring to pursue nursing or related programmes to conduct due diligence by checking the NMCN website for a list of accredited institutions, saying the regulatory body updated the list yearly.
He warned parents to be cautious of institutions making false claims, assuring that the Ogun government would continue to work diligently against quackery in both the education and practice of the nursing profession in the state.
Responding, a 300-level student, who wished to remain anonymous, expressed shock at the institution’s lack of accreditation, regretting the amount of money her parents had spent on the
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