Expert Urges Greater Fight Against Substance Abuse, Others In Rivers

The Technical Adviser and Co-chair, National  Adolescent Technical Working Group Committee, Dr. Esther Envulady, has urged the Rivers State Government to pay more emphasis on the eradication of substance abuse among adolescents in the state,since it affects both boys and girls.
Envulady said that the state needs to do more for adolescents in terms of  advocacy and information to address  this and other challenges in other to safeguard adolescent’s health.
Speaking with The Tide in an exclusive interview during the workshop on Monitoring of Implementation of Priority/Annual Operational Plans organised by the Rivers State Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health and United Nations International Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the adviser stated that the issues of teenage pregnancy, school dropouts and cultism should also be addressed urgently.
She noted that the workshop organised was to  evaluate progress in the implementation of some of the outlined activities in order to accelerate adolescent health, adding that, “we are here to identify the gaps and the challenges in achieving the outlined activities and proffer recommendations on the way forward in achieving the outlined activities to improve adolescent health”.
She stated that adolescent health is a complex issue and so all hands must be on deck to address it.
“We are all stake holders in it. The governments, parents, schools, communities and the developing partners. We all have to play our roles to ensure that our adolescents are healthy. If they are not healthy, we will have problem with the future leadership and unproductive economy” she said.
Envulady, who is also an Associate Professor in Community Medicine and Reproductive Health at the University of Jos explained that in Nigeria, adolescents majorly have health problems which include unintended pregnancy, HIV and STI. Also, increasing rate of substance abuse, violence and rape were other challenges affecting health and development.
She added that, “there is sex abuse of both girls and boys nationally. This is also a problem because we only talk about girls but boys are being raped daily at homes, schools, on the streets, in churches, mosques and other places, so they also need a voice to protect them”.
The adolescent health expert, who has been working on adolescent health issues for over 10 years noted that there are also non-communicable diseases like liver and cervical cancers which is increasingly seen among young people. This is because most of these girls who go into early and unprotected sex are exposed to Human Papiloma Virus.
“Also, poor oral health which leads to poor hygiene, personal and menstrual hygiene is also a priority problem that has been identified nationally. Another problem of adolescents nationally is mental health. In Jos , we see high rate of cancers in the young age group like cervical, liver cancers, also oralferigel cancers from sexual conducts like oral sex”, she noted.
She further explained that most of these activities by these young ones are experimental but not channelled in the right direction, adding that there is need to more information for adolescents and delivery of adolescent responsive health services.
She however appealed to governments that health facilities should have adolescent spaces for them to express themselves for privacy and confidentialities, so that they can feel free to visit  such facilities and relate their problems.
“These ones need more attention because of their sense of adventure. Once they miss it at this point of life, adulthood will be a big challenge,” she said.

By: Ibinabo Ogolo