Day: February 28, 2024

Health workers have been urged to welcome and provide the best Family Planning (FP) options for adolescent people who would visit their facilities.

Mrs Esther Adjei, a Public Health Nurse at the Bono Regional Directorate of Health, gave the advice in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Sunyani.

She stated the adolescents had every right to access FP services, and therefore reminded health workers as a matter of importance to protect the confidentiality of those teenagers who would access such services.

Though she could not immediately provide statistics, Mrs Adjei indicated teenage pregnancy and sexually-transmitted infections (STIs) were recording disturbing figures among young people in the region.

Mrs Adjei said because of an increasing trend of cases, parents must encourage their sexually- active adolescents to access the FP services as there were several best FP options safe for teenagers.

She mentioned poverty, lack of sexual education, child marriages as some of the remote causes of t
eenage pregnancies in the region, and called for intensified sexual reproductive health education in schools to address the challenge.

Mrs Adjei said many of the adolescents were into active sexual behaviours, adding it was only through public sexual education that they would understand their sexual rights to protect themselves.

In a related interview, Mr Richmond Atta-Kwasi, the Bono Regional Health Promotion Officer, said besides health facilities, the Regional Health Directorate had set up adolescent corners, where teenagers could visit and access sexual education and FP services.

He advised sexually active young people to feel free to access information at the adolescent corners to improve their sexual reproductive health conditions.

Mr. Atta-Kwasi added parents and guardians must endeavour to draw, especially their teenage girls closer, to provide them with basic sexual education to protect them against teenage and unwanted pregnancies.

Source: Ghana News Agency

A total of 32 communities in the Bunkpurugu-Nakpanduri District of the North East Region now have access to regular supply of water for their various activities following the construction of boreholes in the area.??

The boreholes were constructed by the Northern Development Authority (NDA) to ensure residents’ access to water for their domestic activities as well as promote improved sanitation and hygiene practices to prevent outbreak of diseases.

The beneficiary communities are Tojin Dauk, Tojin Dickson Kuan, Pagnatiik, Bamong, Nanyiar, Kauk Jagouk, Nabauk, Jabdawuur, Chintilung No2, Kpentaung, Nakpeuk, Najong No1, Nasiabok, Konmoung Gberuk.

The rest are Kunkwadan No1, Gberukkunkook, Kpemale Kpinkpamu, Janandel No2, Balinfiuk, Tangkuan, Langobik Nakpanduri, Gumsuka Nakpanduri, Naadaari, Konbong Kuan.

?????Mr Sulley Sambian, Chief Executive Officer, NDA, who visited the communities to open the boreholes for use by the residents, assured that the NDA was making efforts to drill more boreholes in other comm
unities to ensure their access to water.

?????Mr Sambian said, ‘water remains a critical need of the people’ adding upon assumption of office, he put in a mechanism to get approval from government to drill some boreholes for various communities.’

?????He said approval was given to procure 120 boreholes for all the five regions in the north hence the drilling of the 32 boreholes at Bunkpurugu, adding, ‘Same can be said about Sagnarigu, same can be said about the Upper West Region.’

?????He mentioned other districts where the boreholes had been constructed, saying 10 were constructed at Chereponi, 10 at Yunyoo, 15 at Gambaga, and one at Walewale.

?????He assured the people that ‘We will put in place measures to ensure that we get more boreholes this year.’

?????Mr Joseph Louknaan, District Chief Executive for Bunkpurugu-Nakpanduri, who accompanied the NDA CEO to open the boreholes in the communities, expressed gratitude to the NDA for addressing one of the critical needs of the people.

?????Mr Louknaan ap
pealed for more water projects, including solar-powered mechanised boreholes appealing to other development partners to join efforts at improving sanitation and hygiene practices in the area to eradicate diseases in the area.

?????He said, ‘The population of the area is increasing but we do not have small town water system. We need more boreholes for the people and even our animals.’

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) said hypertension and its related diseases were a major cause of some recent deaths among teachers in the Central Region.

It said the precarious working conditions of teachers, coupled with the harsh economic conditions had brought untold pressure on teachers, with debilitating health outcomes.

Consequently, ‘many teachers are dying at younger ages due to lifestyle changes and troubling working conditions. The situation has forced many to live and reason beyond their capabilities.’

‘The no money syndrome, high dependency ratio, and rising inflation without commiserate salaries have risen the blood pressure of many teachers,’ Mr Isaac Asante Frimpong, the Cape Coast Metro Chairman of GNAT, said on Tuesday.

He was speaking at the GNAT Wesley Local Meeting in Cape Coast to educate teachers on the benefits of good and healthy practices to increase productivity in the classrooms.

The meeting was arranged by the GNAT Wesley Local, in collaboration with ‘Yes We
Cann Foundation,’ a non-governmental organisation dedicated to supporting and educating people on how to avoid kidney related diseases.

Mr Frimpong urged all teachers to adopt healthy lifestyles to reduce the risk of contracting the ailments.

They should do regular exercises and go for medical check-ups for early detection of diseases for prompt treatment.

He, however, did not understand why some Ghanaians preferred to see some disease symptoms before reporting to the hospital, by which time it may have reached an advanced stage.

With the harmattan still lurking, he urged Ghanaians to ensure they were always hydrated, and eat fruits with vitamin C to reduce the chances of contracting upper respiratory tract Infections (URTI) such as common cold.

‘Successfully controlling blood pressure through medication and healthy lifestyle is key to avoiding its negative effects such as stroke, heart and kidney diseases,’ he said.

Taking the participants through the nature of kidney disease, Mr Albert Kusi Tawiah, Se
nior Staff Nurse at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, said it was a medical condition in which the kidneys were damaged, making it difficult to filter blood as it should.

Therefore, excess fluid and waste from the blood remained in the body and may cause other health problems such as heart disease and stroke.

The risk factors include tobacco use, use of dietary salt above the WHO recommendation of five grammes a day, and obesity.

Others are unhealthy diets such as those saturated in fat and trans fats, low intake of fruits and vegetables, physical inactivity, and consumption of alcohol.

He said non-modifiable risk factors included a family history of hypertension, age over 65 years and co-existing diseases such as diabetes or kidney disease.

Re-strategising to diagnose all hypertensive cases for effective management was important to avert preventable deaths and disabilities, he said.

Mr Thomas Cann, the Founder of Yes We Cann Foundation, lamented how some prayer camps had become the first port of call f
or most people with health conditions instead of the hospitals.

He urged Ghanaians to seek professional health care for various ailments and not send their relatives to prayer camps, dotted all over the country.

‘Somehow, some have been made to believe that their sicknesses are spiritual,’ Mr Cann said.

‘I’m not by any way suggesting that there are no problems that border on spirituality, which need prayers to solve, but medical attention must first be sought.’

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Navrongo Health Research Centre (NHRC) in the Kassena-Nankana Municipality of the Upper East Region has organized its annual scientific review meeting to enable the Centre take stock of its activities and strategize for continuous excellent research work.

The meeting brought together health scientists and researchers from the Centre, the Kintampo and Dodowa Health Research Centres, officials from the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and other stakeholders to deliberate and share ideas on how to improve health research in the country.

It was on the theme: ‘Exploring the synergies between health research and academia for development and excellence in tertiary education.’

Dr Patrick Odum Ansah, the Director of the NHRC, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on the sidelines of the meeting, said the annual scientific meeting was to showcase the work they had done over the year.

‘We have done so many things, some are really impacting on lives and on our own development. It is said that an institution which
does not review itself, is on its way to death. So we do this to keep us on track,’ he said.

Dr Ansah said the review indicated that the scientific content of the Centre had improved, as more Social and Biomedical Sciences took centre stage.

‘I was actually very impressed with the Biomedical Scientists, especially with their presentations. It was a joy watching them relate to us what they have done over the year. Our drive is to build more capacities of young Scientists,’ he said.

The Director disclosed that the Centre had started new initiatives for the year 2024, ‘We are working on a study on anti-malaria developed by Novartis. We got approval last year, and recruitment has just started.’

He said even though malaria was not at its peak season and the Centre found it difficult to recruit cases, they would engage facilities beyond Navrongo to get some cases to put the drug to test.

He said the Centre, through its work, would continue to contribute its knowledge to the cause of severe malaria.

On challen
ges of the Centre which affected its smooth operations, apart from the lack of staff, Dr Ansah expressed worry about frequent power surges in the area, and said the Centre had spent huge sums of money to secure its equipment, which frequently broke down, due to the unstable power situation.

He said laboratory equipment was expensive, and management of the Centre continued to spend huge sums to replace such equipment to keep the Centre running.

Dr Samuel Kwabena Boakye-Boateng, the Upper East Regional Director of the GHS, said the theme for the meeting was appropriate within the larger context of Ghana’s Ultimate Health System Goal and the GHS goal of Universal Health Coverage.

He said bringing together health researchers and academics from various disciplines could foster innovative research and teaching approaches, adding that ‘Collaboration between NHRC and Education Institutions can lead to the development of new, evidence-based teaching methods for health-related subjects.’

Dr Boakye-Boateng noted the
need for integration of latest health research findings into curricula that could provide students with up-to-date knowledge and practical skills.

That, the GHS Director said, could help prepare them for careers in health-related fields and contribute to the overall excellence of tertiary education programmes.

‘Engaging students in health research projects can provide valuable hands-on experience and mentorship opportunities and inspire the next generation of health researchers and practitioners to contribute to the development of a culture of research excellence within tertiary education institutions,’ he added.

Dr Boakye-Boateng appreciated the works of the NHRC across the Region and the effective collaboration with the District Health Directorates, hospitals and Health Centres in the Region.

He said the GHS in the Region would continue to work with the NHRC to harmonize its work plans per service delivery and importantly in the light of its mandate in research.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Hohoe Health Directorate will begin a registration exercise for Long-Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLIN) in the Municipality from Thursday, February 29 to Monday, March 4, 2024.

The registration is for all residents in the municipality, and they are required to submit any of their national identity cards for registration.

Mr William Ameke, a Health Promotion Officer at the Directorate, during a Risk Communication Sub-Committee meeting, disclosed that the distribution of the LLIN would be from April 11 to 15, 2024.

He noted that the sensitisation was ongoing at health facilities and communities in the municipality and community health nurses and volunteers had been trained on the exercise.

Mr Philip Darko, the Hohoe Municipal Health Information Officer and Malaria Focal Person, said the exercise was important so stakeholders must support the Directorate to ensure success.

He said malaria cases recorded in the area in 2023 stood at 10,630 as compared to 10,158 in 2022, while that recorded among children un
der five were 2,104 in 2023 as against 1,930 in 2022.

Mr Darko noted that pregnant women who tested positive to malaria were 617 in 2023 and 134 in 2022.

The disease is also among the top 10 cases of infection in the municipality.

Madam Judith Geraldo, a Health Promotion Officer, admonished the public to desist from using treated nets for gardening and fencing.

She noted that torn nets could be sewn, and people must wash them with bar soaps.

Source: Ghana News Agency