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NEWS

WHO, UNICEF congratulate Nigeria on Polio-free status

by Terrydicos
by Terrydicos

THE World Health Organisation, WHO and the United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, have congratulated Nigeria on being declared free of wild polio virus.

The global organisations equally hailed the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, GPEI, partners in Nigeria who helped the country achieve the feat; the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation, GAVI as well as Nigerian traditional and religious leaders and volunteer community mobilisers, describing the latter as foot soldiers who fought to free the children of Nigeria from the wild poliovirus.”

But while noting that achieving “this milestone is not the end of the job”, they called on the country to strengthen its routine immunisation”, saying “all children under five years must continue to be vaccinated against vaccine-preventable diseases.”

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NEWSPOLITICSTRENDING

WHO echoes severe impact of COVID-19 on African women

by Terrydicos
by Terrydicos

The World Health Organization earlier this week (June 17) reiterated concerns over the rate at which COVID-19 exposes women in Africa “to a higher risk of abuse and gender-based violence.” This comes after hundreds of cases on rape and other forms of violence against women have been recorded in parts of the continent.

Dr. Matshidiso Moeti is WHO regional Director for Africa: “The physical distances associated with home stay orders have affected women’s businesses, their ability to earn a living on a daily basis and, in some cases, have unfortunately exposed women involved in abusive relationships to a higher risk of violence, gender-based violence.” Bineta Diop is the AU’s special envoy on women peace and security: “The majority of African women are in the informal labour market, losing their jobs and being asked to stay safe at home. So, definitively, I can say that the impact of COVID-19 has the face of women in particular on our continent.

Because of the situation, they are [more] disproportionately affected than men.” Analysts say, sexual and gender-based-violence is a hidden ramification of the covid-19 pandemic that will likely cause many women to suffer in silence. According to the World Health Organisation, 35% of women around the world have already experienced some form of sexual and gender-based violence in their lifetime.

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NEWSPOLITICS

COVID-19: NMA warns FG against adoption of WHO’s home treatment policy

by Terrydicos
by Terrydicos

The Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, on Thursday warned the Federal government against the adoption of the newly approved World Health Organisation, WHO’s home treatment policy for COVID-19 patients. In advisory jointly signed by the President, Dr. Francis Faduyile, and the Secretary, Dr. Olumuyiwa Odusote, they further pointed out that the full adoption of the new guidelines may lead to an explosive regime of community transmission. According to them, while the association acknowledged the noticeable acute shortage of bed spaces available at the designated centres, the peculiarities in the country should be taken into consideration before adopting the newly approved guidelines

The medical doctors counseled that Nigeria has an average of six persons per household; and consequently, wholesale adoption of the guideline may not be applicable in a country like Nigeria. “We risk an explosive regime of community transmission if we adopt the guidelines completely without modifications, especially in situations of poor housing and overcrowding.”

Further, the NMA said revamping the country’s abandoned General Hospitals and Primary Health Centres (PHCs) would mitigate the challenges with home treatment and acute shortage of bed spaces. “We still maintain that Isolation and Treatment centres should stand-alone to avoid the nosocomial spread of this infection especially in settings of poor hygiene practices.

If we adopt the guidelines completely without modifications, especially in situations of poor housing and overcrowding, we will risk an explosion of cases in communities.” Continuing, the association lamented that the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, has carried out only 29,400 tests, hence, the need for the agency to fast-track testing using innovative specimen collection and transport modalities to ameliorate the deficit in technique.

NMA appreciates quite immensely the Coalition against COVID-19 (CA-COVID) which is a coalition of corporate Nigeria mobilizing resources to mitigate the embarrassing infrastructural deficiencies in the health sector for the management of the outbreak. We appeal that they extend their humanitarian and patriotic gesture outside Abuja to other parts of the Federation as promised, especially the States with high incidence. “NMA also calls on the Coalition not to abandon healthcare delivery to the government alone post-COVID as the current pandemic has exposed several deficiencies in the system.

As Nigeria records its 5000th COVID-19 positive case, NMA makes the following observations and proffers the accompanying solutions; The NMA also expressed displeasure over the continued obstruction of the National Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, by the governments of Kogi and Cross River State despite the lofty provisions in the NCDC Establishment Act (2018) which empower the organization to “prevent, detect, monitor and control” activities and programmes for the national response against infectious diseases epidemics among others. “NMA views this development as unfortunate, condemnable, and requires urgent intervention by the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. “

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EDUCATIONNEWSTRENDING

Coronavirus may never go away ― WHO

by Terrydicos
by Terrydicos

The new coronavirus may never go away and populations around the world will have to learn to live with it, the World Health Organization warned Wednesday. As some countries around the world begin gradually easing lockdown restrictions imposed in a bid to stop the novel coronavirus from spreading, the WHO said it may never be wiped out entirely.

The virus first emerged in Wuhan in China late last year and has since infected more tha.2 million people and killed nearly 300,000 worldwide. “We have a new virus entering the human population for the first time and therefore it is very hard to predict when we will prevail over it,” said Michael Ryan, the WHO’s emergencies director.

This virus may become just another endemic virus in our communities and this virus may never go away,” he told a virtual press conference in Geneva. “HIV has not gone away — but we have come to terms with the virus.” More than half of humanity has been put under some form of lockdown since the coronavirus crisis began. But the WHO warned there was no way to guarantee that easing the restrictions would not trigger a second wave of infections.

Many countries would like to get out of the different measures,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “But our recommendation is still the alert at any country should be at the highest level possible.” – ‘Long way to go’ – Ryan added that there was a “long, long way to go” on the path to returning to normal, insisting that countries would have to stay the course.

There is some magical thinking going on that lockdowns work perfectly and that unlocking lockdowns will go great. Both are fraught with dangers,” the Irish epidemiologist said.

Ryan also condemned attacks on healthcare workers that were linked to the pandemic, saying more than 35 “quite serious” such incidents were recorded in April alone in 11 countries.

He said the attacks were often over-reactions from ill-informed communities — while others were more sinister. “COVID-19 is bringing out the best in us, but it’s also bringing out some of the worst,” he said. “People feel empowered to take out their frustrations on individuals who are purely trying to help.

These are senseless acts of violence and discrimination that must be resisted.” But he insisted that in finding a way to conquer the virus was a chance for humanity to take major step forward by finding a vaccine and making it widely accessible. “It’s a massive opportunity for the world,” Ryan said.

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TRENDING

COVID-19 Cases Rise To 23,000 In Africa – WHO

by Anifowose Joseph
by Anifowose Joseph

The World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Office for Africa in Brazzaville, Congo, has said the number of Coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in Africa had risen to over 23,000.
The UN’s health agency gave the update on its official twitter account, @WHOAFRO on Tuesday.
“More than 23,000 COVID-19 cases have been reported on the African continent – with over 5,900 recoveries and 1,100 deaths,’’ it said.

Blood sample with respiratory coronavirus positive
The WHO African Region COVID-19 dashboard showed that in sub-Saharan Africa, South Africa suffers the most severe outbreak while Cameroon and Ghana have more than 2,000 confirmed cases.
The breakdown on the dashboard showed that South Africa, Algeria and Cameroon had continued to top the list of countries with the highest reported cases.
South Africa has 3,300 cases and 58 deaths followed by Algeria with 2,718 cases and 384 deaths, while Cameroon has 1,163 confirmed cases with 42 deaths.
According to the dashboard, South Sudan, Sao Tome and Principe, Burundi and Mauritania still remain countries with lowest confirmed cases in the region.
It showed that South Sudan and Sao Tome and Principe had the lowest confirmed cases, with each having four cases with zero death.
Burundi, the update showed was the second country with the lowest confirmed cases with six reported cases and one death.
Mauritania, the third country with lowest cases, had recorded seven confirmed cases with one death.
Also, the dashboard showed Nigeria is number 9 among the countries with highest cases with 541 confirmed cases and 19 deaths.
Giving an update, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said 38 new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in the last 24 hours, bringing total number of confirmed cases to 665 in Nigeria.
(NAN)

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NEWS

WHO Warns Lifting Of Coronavirus Lockdown Must Be Gradual

by Anifowose Joseph
by Anifowose Joseph

The World Health Organization warned on Tuesday that any lifting of lockdowns to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus must be gradual, and if restrictions were to be relaxed too soon, there would be a resurgence of infections.

Lockdown measures have proved effective, and people must be ready for a new way of living to allow society to function while the coronavirus is being kept in check, said Takeshi Kasai, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific.
We must adapt our lives and health systems along with the epidemic, Kasai told an online press conference.
“At least until a vaccine, or a very effective treatment, is found, this process will need to become our new normal.”
Governments considering lifting lockdown measures should do so carefully and in stages, and continue to monitor the epidemic situation, he said. So long as the coronavirus is circulating, no country is safe from a potentially overwhelming outbreak, he said.
“Individuals and society need to be ready for a new way of living,” he said.
While the Western Pacific has in recent weeks been much less hard hit by the epidemic than the United States or Europe, there has been an increase in cases in Japan and Singapore, among other countries.
Kasai also warned that the epidemic must not disrupt vaccination programmes against other diseases like polio, measles and rubella. Otherwise the Western Pacific could face a new crisis when health systems are already strained, he said.
Reuters

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NEWSTRENDING

COVID-19 cases in Africa rise to over 14,000 — WHO

by Terrydicos
by Terrydicos

The World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Office for Africa in Brazzaville, Congo, says the number of Coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in Africa has risen to over 14,000. ADVERTISING The UN’s health agency gave the update on its official twitter account @WHOAFRO on Monday. “COVID19 cases in Africa rise to over 14,000 – with 2,523 recoveries and 754 deaths reported,’’ it said.

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   The breakdown of the WHO African Region COVID-19 dashboard showed that South Africa, Algeria, and Cameroon had continued to top the list of countries with the highest reported cases. makes face mask compulsory South Africa has 2,173 cases and 25 deaths followed by Algeria with 1,914 cases and 293 deaths, while Cameroon has 803 confirmed cases with 10 deaths. According to the dashboard, the countries with the lowest confirmed cases are South Sudan, Sao Tome, and Principe, Burundi, and Mauritania and Gabo Verde.

It showed that South Sudan and Sao Tome and Principe were the lowest confirmed cases, which had four cases each with zero death. Burundi was the second country with the lowest confirmed cases with five reported cases and zero death. Mauritania and Gabo Verde are in the third category with the lowest cases as the country had recorded seven confirmed cases each with one death.

Also, the dashboard showed that COVID-19 cases had risen to 323 in the past two days from 288 confirmed cases with 10 deaths in Nigeria.

The agency, however, thanked the health workers at the front lines of the COVID-19 response. “We in the health care profession are the ones to step in to help people in times like these; we have to be psychologically prepared,’’ Joyce Kaguura, ICU Nurse, Kenyatta University Hospital, responded

9jainsider.com

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NEWSTRENDING

World Health Day: WHO pays tribute to health workers battling COVID-19

by Terrydicos
by Terrydicos

The World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Office for Africa in Brazzaville, Congo, has paid tribute to all healthcare workers battling the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) around the world. The UN’s health agency paid the tribute on its official twitter account @WHOAFRO to commemorate the World Health Day.

The World Health Day is a global health awareness day celebrated every April 7, under the sponsorship of the WHO, as well as other related organisations. WHO declared 2020 as the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife; and the day has been set aside to celebrate the work of the caregivers. “On World Health Day, let’s say thank you to all the nurses and midwives who put themselves at risk to help people everywhere, including in times of outbreaks.

Today is a day to celebrate the critical role of nurses and midwives in keeping the world healthy. “Thank you Midwife Helen Masika who worked tirelessly to protect newborns from Ebola infection in Butembo in Democratic Republic of Congo,” WHO stated. Meanwhile, WHO headquarters in Geneva has launched a new report that provided an in-depth look at the largest component of the health workforce globally to commemorate the day.

In the new report on “The State of the World’s Nursing 2020,’’ WHO provided an in-depth look at the largest component of the health workforce. The report highlights the nursing contribution and confirms that investment in the nursing profession is a benefit to society, not a cost.

The world needs millions more nurses, and we are calling on governments to do the right thing, invest in this wonderful profession and watch their populations benefit from the amazing work that only nurses can do. “About 90 per cent of all nurses are female, yet few nurses are found in senior health leadership positions – the bulk of those positions are held by men. “But when countries enable nurses to take a leadership role, for example by having a government chief nursing officer (or equivalent), and nursing leadership programmes, conditions for nurses improve,” the report noted.

The report also said to equip the world with the nursing workforce, it required WHO and its partners recommend that all countries increase funding to educate and employ more nurses; strengthen capacity to collect, analyse and act on data about the health workforce. It also expects WHO and its partners to monitor nurse mobility and migration and manage it responsibly and ethically.

Additionally, it wants WHO and partners to, “Educate and train nurses in the scientific, technological and sociological skills they need to drive progress in primary health care; establish leadership positions including a government chief nurse and support leadership development among young nurses.

Ensure that nurses in primary health care teams work to their full potential, for example in preventing and managing non-communicable diseases. “Improve working conditions including through safe staffing levels, fair salaries, and respecting rights to occupational health and safety; implement gender-sensitive nursing workforce policies.”

The report similarly wants WHO and its partners to, “Modernise professional nursing regulation by harmonising education and practice standards and using systems that can recognise and process nurses’ credentials globally. “Strengthen the role of nurses in care teams by bringing different sectors (health, education, immigration, finance and labour) together with nursing stakeholders for policy dialogue and workforce planning.

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