The World Health Organisation (WHO) has commenced a new initiative, SPECS 2030, to assist countries in achieving the global eye care target of a 40% increase in the proportion of people with access to appropriate spectacles.
The launch will be held during a two-day meeting in Geneva, Switzerland with over 100 participants including Member States representatives, UN agencies, academia and nongovernmental organisations.
“The SPECS 2030 initiative marks a significant milestone in combatting uncorrected refractive error, commonly known as short-sightedness or long-sightedness, which is the leading cause of vision impairment in both children and adults,” said Dr Bente Mikkelsen, WHO Director for Noncommunicable Diseases, Rehabilitation and Disability.
“Globally, it is estimated that only around one third of people with vision impairment due to refractive error have access to a pair of spectacles that allows them to see well,” Mikkelsen added.
The SPECS 2030 initiative calls for coordinated action across five key areas of improved access to refractive services build capacity of personnel to provide refractive services, improve population education,reduce the cost of refractive error services, strengthen surveillance and research.
The initiative will focus on four key strategies of engagement to support countries and stakeholders.
Global SPECS Network provides a platform for relevant organisations to promote collective and coordinated advocacy and action, share experiences, and expand their professional network.
Private sector dialogues will be convened with relevant private sector actors, including the optical, pharmaceutical and technology industries, private sector service providers and insurance companies.

Engagement of regions and countries, including a range of activities, will accelerate progress and bridge the gap between global eye care commitments and country implementation, such as WHO-led policy dialogues with governments, country-level workshops, or capacity building and awareness raising activities.

“We are committed to strengthen engagement with all key stakeholders and unite towards coordinated action and advocacy,” said Dr Mikkelsen. “To achieve this, the WHO Global SPECS Network has been established and the inaugural 32 member organizations are participating in the meeting.”

Kevin Nengia

The Society for Family Planning Health(SFH) has unveiled a self injection family planning scheme in conjunction with the State Primary Health Board.
Described as the Disc(Delivery Innovation in Self Care) programme, it offers women with the ability to control their reproductive choice  by  practicing self injection method to forestall unwanted pregnancy for at least three months.
The new method is painless compared with the old method ad women can inject themselves.
To help propagate the the innovation, the Rivers State Government has emphasised  the need for families to embrace the family planning scheme to minimise the number of children they carter for, stressing that  an effective family planning  strengthens the economy and promote good healthy living in the family.
The Executive Secretary of the State Primary Health Care Management Board ,Dr Kinikanwo Green,  stated that  (DISC ) will help women and improve family planning across board.
Kinikanwo who represented the state government at the event, commended the SFH for training and retraining of staff of the state Ministry of Health and the Health Management Board on the new innovations in the family planning method , adding that the importance of family planning in the society can not be over emphasised.
He averred that the state government as a critical stakeholder  will ensure that the family planning consumables are made free of charge in the 344 public healthcare centres across  the 23 Local Government Areas of the State.
According to him,the Disc programme showcased the new innovations that are applicable and offered women to control their reproductive choice  by  practicing self injection method to forestall unwanted pregnancy for three months.
“So if you inject yourself after three months it keeps pregnancy away thus, a good family planning method.
“Family planning help you to size your family according to your pocket, especially during this harsh economic situation.
“It help you in terms of the health of the child, and of course, the society at large.
“Family planning is a good intervention as it help to promote good health to children and also enhance the health of the mother and .
“We will ensure that these consumables are taken to the various Local Government Areas of the state,”he stated.
The State Executive Secretary of Primary Health Care Management Board opined that the state government will continue to engage the Society for Family Health in the state , stressing that within the 21 months of the programme implementation in the state ,they have been able to raise the awareness index of the state from 1.2 to 1.20 percent.
Also speaking,the Deputy team lead ,Disc project society for Family Health ,
Mopelola Raji said that they have been in the State for the past 21 months to showcased what they have learned.

Raji said that Self injection was designed to designed particularly for women  to make them feel empowered and  to boost their efficiency in the society.

“ The self injection was showcased to give women voice for them to have control over their sexual reproductive health choice.

“ When we enter Rivers State in 2022 the self injection were at 2.0 percent but as at data the state is around 59 percent” she stated.

Akujobi Amadi

Researchers in a study have suggested that date palm is an arsenal to fight infertility in couples. They found that one-month consumption of date palm has a positive impact on the sexual function of infertile couples.
The study to investigate the effect of date palms on the sexual function of infertile couples  was in the 2022 edition of the BMC Research Notes.
In a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial conducted on infertile women and their husbands who were referred to infertility clinics in Iran in 2019, researchers found sexual function in females (arousal, orgasm, lubrication, pain during intercourse, satisfaction) in the intervention group was significantly increased compared to females in the control group that had no date palm.
Infertility and infertility management affects different dimensions of a couple’s life. Sexual dysfunctions can appear in both partners and might provoke problems in every stage of sexual response. Infertility negatively affects the sexuality of infertile couples.
Numerous studies show that infertile women have lower sexual function than fertile women. Sexual satisfaction is strongly affected by the consequences of infertility such as reduced self-esteem, feelings of depression and anxiety, and failed sexual relationships.
The intervention group was given a palm date capsule and the control group was given a placebo. The starch powder was applied to prepare the placebo capsules.
Also, all areas of male sexual function (erectile function, orgasmic function, sexual desire, intercourse satisfaction and overall satisfaction) significantly increased in the intervention group compared to the control group.
Infertility is not only a medical problem but also affects all personal dimensions and social life of most infertile individuals. Infertile couples are more prone to psychological problems (anxiety, depression, and stress), which may result in marital distress, social dysfunction (stigma, social exclusion, and feelings of failure), and reduced quality of life.
Infertility and infertility management affects different dimensions of a couple’s life. Sexual dysfunctions can appear in both partners and might provoke problems in every stage of sexual response. Infertility negatively affects the sexuality of infertile couples.
Numerous studies show that infertile women have lower sexual function than fertile women. Sexual satisfaction is strongly affected by the consequences of infertility such as reduced self-esteem, feelings of depression and anxiety, and failed sexual relationships.
Dates palm is known to have come from what is now Iraq. In Nigeria, dry and soft date fruits are sold out for consumption. However, in the northern part, they are added to the locally brewed alcoholic beverage to help reduce the intoxicating power.
Dates are a good source of energy and vitamins and important elements such as phosphorus, iron, potassium and a significant amount of calcium. It is also rich in phenolic compounds possessing free radical scavenging and antioxidant activity.
Since ancient times, the date palm has been used in Greece, China and Egypt to treat infertility and increase sexual desire and fertility in females. There are few studies on the effect of date palms on male and female sexual function in human beings.
Besides, studies have shown that the various parts of its plant are widely used in traditional medicine for the treatment of various disorders which include memory disturbances, fever, inflammation, paralysis, loss of consciousness and nervous disorders.
The researchers suggested that the improvement in male and female sexual function can be due to active ingredients and increased levels of sex hormones following the consumption of date palms since studies indicated that increasing sex hormones are effective in sexual function.
They, however, recommended more studies with a longer duration on the use of date palms on sex hormone levels in infertile couples.
Previously, a study revealed that using date palms in postmenopausal women for 1 month had a positive and significant impact on sexual desire and arousal.  Another suggested that using date palms had a positive impact on orgasm, satisfaction and lubrication in women and also reduced pain during intercourse in women.
In the laboratory, administering date palms to male rats and measuring their sexual behaviours, researchers showed that sexual behaviour parameters (number of ejaculations, number of intercourse) increased compared to the control group.

Culled from Tribune online