Chioma Umeha

• Says Political Will Apparent For Achievement Of SDGs Deputy Ministers of Health and experts from Nigeria and other member states of the D-8 Organisation for Economic Cooperation (D-8) have resolved to strengthen their commitment towards the implementation of the organisation’s Health and Social Protection Programme (HSP ).   This was part of their resolutions in a communiqué issued after the inaugural consultative meeting of the programme organised by the D-8 Secretariat and the federal government in Abuja. The D-8 Organisation for Economic Cooperation (D-8), is an organisation for development co-operation among eight developing countries in the Muslim world.   They are: Bangladesh, Egypt, Nigeria, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Turkey.   It was established in 1997 and aimed at sustainable economic development, and uplifting the standards of living of member states. The inaugural consultation was organised to enable solidarity and cooperation

Some wives of Nigerian Governors, under the aegis of Wives of Governors Against Cancer (WOGAC), has formed strong alliance with Roche Nigeria as part of their efforts to win the war against cancer in Nigeria. Roche, an international organisati on with headquarters in Basel, Switzerland, is a leader in research-focused healthcare with combined strength in pharmaceutical and diagnostics, and is also the world’s largest biotech company with truly differentiated medicines in oncology, virology, inflammation, metabolism and CNS. Roche’s personalised healthcare strategy aims at providing medicines and diagnostic tools that enable tangible improvements in the health quality of life and survival of patients. WOGAC’s partnership arrangement with Roche which took place during a round table meeting held at Belanova Apartments and Suites, Maitama, Abuja, with the theme; TOGETHER FOR HER, promises to yield results that will change the   narrative on cancer control and care in Nigeri

CHIOMA UMEHA P rof. Adetokunbo Fabamwo, the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), has disclosed that Lagos State government was committed to saving women’s lives from unsafe abortion that has killed millions annually and at a great cost. Speaking at a training programme of the Population Reference Bureau (PRB) and SAFE ENGAGE in collaboration with the Network of Reproductive Health Journalists (NRHJN) in Lagos recently, Prof. Fabamwo said the state government was working assiduously to improve access to safe abortion within the extant laws of the land. He said that statistics shows that unsafe abortions account for roughly 5,000 maternal deaths every year in Nigeria, or on average, 14 maternal deaths each day, while unsafe abortions are also costly to women and the health care system. He added that 50% of deaths due to unsafe abortion are adolescents while 60% of abortions are done by quacks. The LASUTH CMD noted th

LUCY SAMUEL Some of the Survivors of Collapsed Ita Faji Building Survivors at the event. Inset: Some donated Items by Save The children International Worried over the fate of accident victims and families at the Ita Faji building collapse in Lagos earlier in the year, health experts have called for support to ensure that adequate healthcare and rehabilitation is provided for them. Among those who made the call penultimate Tuesday in Lagos was the Area Operations Manager for Save The Children International, Kayode Ajumobi, when the organisation made a donation of some relief materials to the victims.   Ajumobi further urged public-spirited individuals, and government at all levels to come to the aid of the victims of the collapsed building, reasoning that many of them are still in pitiable conditions and yet to recuperate. For instance, Nine-year-old Joy Ikwueze has been at Gbagada General Hospital, Lagos, for over three months, where she is receiv

• Pledges Improved Health Sector CHIOMA UMEHA Com. Biobelemoye Joy Josiah, Chairman, Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU), has urged the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) to comply with all judgments of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) issued on March 28, 2019 pertaining to the payment of outstanding 2018 salaries to members and actualising the adjustment of CONHESS Scale pending for many years. Josiah made the appeal when he led a delegation of JOHESU/ Assembly of Healthcare Professional Associations (AHPA) national leadership on a courtesy visit to Abdullahi Abdulkadir, the Permanent Secretary, FMoH last Thursday, in Abuja. He told the Perm Sec that contrary to the pervading impression that JOHESU does not believe in dialogue, members had always excelled in the finest tenets of rules of engagement to ensure the stability and growth of the health sector. He then intimated him of some of the lingering welfare challenges of JOHESU members which in

Some-of-the-attendees-of-the-Autism-Awareness-presentation-which-held-on-weekend Autism is a simple behavioral disorder and disability that can be managed so that the affected person can connect with the society and reach their highest potential in life, according to Mrs. Dicta Ndolo, a United States-based Behaviour Analyst who has dismissed beliefs that the condition is a disease. She also advised parents of children living with Autism to break the silence by seeking the answers to their wards disability, instead of shying away, noting that would not be of help. Mrs. Dicta Ndolo who also is creating massive Autism Awareness campaign in Enugu state, told DAILY INDEPENDENT in an interview that symptoms of Autism can be identified in children through their communication, social behaviour and speech challenge, just as she admonished parents to be on the lookout for these signs. ‘Autism is a developmental, neurological disability that affects one in 87 children and for every five kids affe

As Nigeria joins to mark the World Population Day tomorrow, CHIOMA UMEHA who recently interacted with community leaders in Badagry Local Government Area of Lagos State on family planning writes that myths and misconceptions seriously contributing to the wrong perception of the practice thereby militating against the realisation of its noble goals in the country. In spite of the role of family planning in reducing the health risks for women and children, improving the quality of life by increasing opportunities to access education, nutrition, employment and effective utilisation of scarce resources, many factors bedevilled its successful implementation in many communities. Sharing her experience with DAILY INDEPENDENT recently, Mrs Salami Sidikat Iyabo, the Family Planning Manager, in Badagry Local Government Area of Lagos State, said that some myths, misconception, and superstition are among many of the factors that account for the poor state of affairs in Badagry Local Gov

Chioma Umeha The Board of Fellows (BOF) of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has reaffirmed that only widespread intervention involving every stakeholders led by pharmacists would curb high incidence of drug and substance abuse in the country. The pharmacy group said that the intervention includes advocacy, campaign against drug abuse and rehabilitation of victims which would reduce the adverse effect of the scourge. Addressing journalists at a press conference in Lagos to announce the 2019 BOF- PSN mid-year lecture and first public lecture, Chairperson, BOF, Prof. Mbang Nyong Femi-Oyewo said that the body is positioned to interface with the policymakers and opinion shapers for the advancement of the pharmacy profession in addition to tackling drug abuse. Femi-Oyewo said, “It is no longer news that the incidence of drug/substance abuse in Nigeria has assumed an epidemic dimension especially among children/adolescent and youths, which calls for widespread intervent

Chioma Umeha I congratulate you on your successful hosting of the 38th Annual National Conference of the ACPN. Could you briefly tell us something about the conference? It gives me great joy to welcome all members to the proceedings of the 38th Annual National Conference of the foremost technical group of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN). Over time, we have strived to evolve as the flagship and conscience of the Pharmacy profession in Nigeria. I believe we have kept faith with this posture by upholding and consolidating the gains of past leaders of the ACPN (formerly, Nigerian Association of General Practice Pharmacist (NAGPP). We shall exploit this discourse to critically evaluate some contemporary subject matters in the health sector and more specifically Pharmacy practice. Briefly, what are the issues? Redressing the Menace of Drug Abuse and Misuse in Nigeria is one. The ACPN and other major blocs as well as interest groups have taken the lead in bring

Chioma Umeha Prof. Babatunde Salako, the Director General, Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), has called on Nigerians to embrace science and technology of Bioinformatics as core component to achieve Sustainable Development Goals 2030 and to overcome the prevailing disease burdens in the country. Addressing participants at the first Nigerian Bioinformatics Conference, participants who gathered at the Conference Hall of the Nigerian Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) penultimate weekend to discuss innovative ways of introducing Bioinformatics into the various segments of the healthcare industry, Salako said Africa, especially Nigeria, cannot be left out in the technological revolution that is ongoing around the world. Prof Salako who spoke through Dr. Oliver Ezechi, Principal Investigator, NIMR, said the conference was critical in bringing international researchers together for the purpose of exploring the potentials of Bioinformatics and Genomics technologie