Chioma Umeha

...As Royal Philips New Survey Reveals Ailing Sector By Chioma Umeha There is growing concern over the state of healthcare in Nigeria. Many pundits have it that there is no future to the country’s healthcare system. According to them, it is a scenario where uncertainty governs access and the structure is largely powered by out-of-pocket payments in the private sector and an over-burdened public sector. The answer does not even lie in government simply putting more money in the health sector, but the solution is restoring the confidence of the Nigerian public in the system. It was not surprising therefore that the issue was a focus on the a recent summit in Lagos, tagged, ‘Future of Health In Nigeria’ organised by Royal Philips, one of the global leaders in health technology, in collaboration with KPMG Africa. The deliberation which attracted many health industry key players who brainstormed on way forward for the sector witnessed the release of a new he

By Our Correspondents Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) includes all fertility treatments in which both eggs and sperm are handled outside of the body. In general, ART procedures involve surgically removing eggs from a woman’s ovaries, combining them with sperm in the laboratory, and returning them to the woman’s body or donating them to another woman. The main type of ART is in vitro fertilization (IVF). Types of ART Common methods of ART include: In vitro fertilization (IVF), meaning fertilization outside of the body. IVF is the most effective and the most common form of ART. Zygote intrafallopian transfer (ZIFT) or tubal embryo transfer – This is similar to IVF. Fertilization occurs in the laboratory. Then the very young embryo is transferred to the fallopian tube instead of the uterus. Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT) involves transferring eggs and sperm into the woman’s fallopian tube. Fertilization occurs in the woman’s body. Few practices

By Chioma Umeha  Many people of Bangai in Riyom Local Government Area(LGA), Plateau State were still less ignorant when Samuel died. He was a 10-year-old pupil of Bangai Community primary school. ‘Samuel was pressed to pass feaces, so he quickly dashed into the closest bush. With his tiny frail hands, he quickly reached out for a short stick and quickly he has made a little hole. There he passed feaces. Immediately, he plucked some fresh leaves from a nearby plant to clean his butt. He hurriedly cleaned himself, leaving some of the feacal matter on his hands. Then it was common practice for not only children, even adults to defecate openly in many communities in Bangai. Washing of hands was hardly practiced. The only stream in the school community was less than one kilometre away. But, the path to the stream was rough, hilly, unsecured and its water was not safe for drinking. Bangai is one example of hundreds of communities in Nigeria where access to safe w

•It’s Testament To Global Best Practices –PSN By Chioma Umeha  Lagos – History has been made in the quest for health workers’ career progression as the Lagos State Government has approved the creation of Consultant Pharmacist cadre in its scheme of service. In a letter of appreciation to Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, Lagos State governor, Pharm. Bola Adeniran, Chairman, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria    (PSN) Lagos State chapter, thanked the Lagos State Government for the gesture. Pharm. Adeniran said that the creation of the consultant cadre was a testament to the global best practices expected of a Centre of Excellence like Lagos. She said the creation would eventually ensure that the professionals would be able to practice to the best of their ability in enhancing patient-centred healthcare services. “We look forward to the speedy implementation of the circular,” she said. The creation of the consultant cadre for pharmacists was sequel to the approval

Chioma Umeha A diagnosis of High Blood Pressure, HBP, or as known by its medical terms, Hypertension is never a good news to the patient.   However, being aware of the condition is good because it helps the patient to modify his lifestyle. According to recent survey by the World Health Organisation (WHO), there are at least 1.13 billion people globally suffering from Hypertension. But, that is not the end of the bad news. The survey also found that incidences of hypertension had doubled in the last 40 years. Another WHO’s recent gender comparison data on hypertension prevalence further rated Nigerian adult high with 51 percent for males and 49 percent for females, followed by Ghana with 41 percent male and 38 percent female. It is against this background that pharmacists marked this year’s World Hypertension Day via a walk against high Blood Pressure (BP). The pharmacists who organised the event under the auspices of West African Postgraduates College o

Chioma Umeha Following its Advisory meeting in April 2018, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has issued its first listing of Essential Diagnostics. The list is split into general laboratory tests (n= 58) and specific tests for key infections (HIV. TB, hepatitis, syphilis and human papilloma virus) (n=55). It is also split into sections relating to testing in primary care settings versus hospital laboratory settings. With respect to fungal diseases and mycology, several key tests are included: microscopy, blood culture, other cultures and cryptococcal antigen test. These provide a good start for a mycology service. Four levels of clinical setting and laboratory services are mentioned from primary care point of care testing, through district hospitals with laboratories, to regional and specialized hospitals and laboratories and finally national reference laboratories. All tests are not appropriate for all settings, either because of complexity or because of the

Chioma Umeha  Urges long-term action to build resilient health systems locally and national public health systems to pick up events rapidly. Kinshasa/ Bandaka/Bikoro, 20 May 2018 – The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) is deploying 25 epidemiologists, laboratory experts, and anthropologists to support the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC)   efforts to control the recent Ebola virus outbreat in Mbandaka and Bikoro. Following the announcement on 8 May 2018 of the Ebola outbreak by the government of DRC, the Africa CDC deployed an assessment mission within 48 hours and activated its Emergency Operational Centre to link, scan and monitor the situation. “The global community needs to respond to this outbreak as a crisis and not as an emergency, by quickly deploying public health assets to the affected areas expiditiously”. I want to applaud the Minister of Health of the DRC for his exemplary leadership in managing th

Chioma Umeha  There are increasing calls for Nigeria to consider family planning so as to effectively control the number of birth amid rising population of almost 200 million people in the in the face of scarce resource. There are also series of awareness campaigns by government and health related non-governmental organisation aimed at taking the message of effective family planning (FP) across homes in towns and villages. Despite increased awareness programmes on family planning in the country, the uptake remains very low. As method of ensuring effective population control, the global community has set 2020 as a target for more women and girls around the globe to be able to plan their families and their future via family planning programmes. Visibly acting in line with this global commitment, Nigeria also set a target to increase its Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR) from 15 per cent to 27 per cent that by 2020. The CPR which is ‘the percentage of wome

Our Correspondents What if you could find out your odds of having a child with a genetic disorder before you even got pregnant? Modern testing makes it possible. With at-home tests, it’s easier than ever to get screened. Doctors usually recommend this step for parents-to-be who have a higher risk of passing on certain diseases, like cystic fibrosis. And because of these screening tests, the number of people who have some disorders, like Tay-Sachs disease, has gone way down. But what if you’re not considered high risk? Should you check your genes before you get pregnant? Your doctor or a genetic counselor can help you decide. How does genetic tests work? Many genetic disorders happen when a person has two bad copies of a gene, one from each parent. If you have only one faulty copy, you won’t have any symptoms of the condition, but you are a ‘carrier’ for it. Your baby will be born with the disorder only if both you and your partner pass the bad gene to him