Day: June 28, 2024

Dr Paul Boateng, the Case Management Focal Person for the National Malaria Elimination Programme (NMEP), says the media has key roles to play to ensure Ghana achieves its malaria elimination objectives.

He said as key stakeholders, the media should work by raising awareness, and promoting the use of prescribed malaria preventive measures and behavioural change among the citizenry to ensure a malaria-free Ghana.

He said this when the Ghana Health Service (GHS) through the NMEP organised a two-day capacity building workshop for selected journalists to deepen their understanding on the malaria elimination activities in the country.

The workshop, held in Accra, was also aimed at strengthening collaboration among journalists and equip them with the knowledge and skills to effectively communicate malaria prevention strategies and advocate for NMEP interventions, especially in rural areas.

It was on the theme: ‘The Role of the Media in the Malaria Elimination.’

Dr Boateng stated that the country was making stri
des in controlling malaria through some strategic interventions like the distribution of long-lasting insecticide nets, indoor residual spraying and limited lavaeciding.

Others were malaria vaccination, intermittent preventive treatments, seasonal malaria chemoprevention, and case management and diagnosis treatments, among others.

However, to attain a malaria-free Ghana would require the effective collaboration among all stakeholders to advance the National Malaria Elimination Strategic Plans between 2024 and 2028, he noted.

He said: ‘As media practitioners, we must use our platforms to counter misinformation, report scientific advances, empower local voices, and highlight success stories so that collectively we can achieve our set goals and objectives in terms of our malaria elimination agenda.’

Dr Franklin Asiedu-Bekoe, Director of Public Health at the GHS, said malaria was still a threat to public health, ‘but we cannot ignore the incredible progress our country has made in saving lives and reducing th
e burden of this disease.’

He said the GHS and partners made considerable progress regarding malaria morbidity and mortality over the years.

He said: ‘The malaria testing rate has improved considerably from 38 per cent in 2012 to 98 per cent in 2023, malaria prevalence has decreased from 27.5 per cent in 2011 to 8.6 per cent in 2022, and deaths due to malaria have also reduced from 2,799 in 2012 to 146 in the year 2023.

‘This consistent reduction in morbidity and mortality assures us all of the effectiveness of our interventions, as well as the hope of elimination with improved and sustained efforts.’

Dr Asiedu-Bekoe asked the media to continue raising public awareness about malaria prevention and treatment options, while encouraging the people to change their behaviour by consistently using mosquito nets, seeking early diagnosis, and sticking to treatment plans.

Dr Charity Binka, the Executive Director of African Media in Malaria Research Network (AMMREN), said the role of the media in eliminating malar
ia in Ghana could not be overstated and called on all to join forces to achieve the goals of the NMEP and create a future where malaria would no longer be a public health threat.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Management of the Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital has called on the media to carefully follow up with the facility on public information shared with them by some aggrieved clients.

This would ensure that verified and accurate reports are generated on matters bothering clients and Hospital activities to ensure that wrong communications do not create image crisis for the Regional Hospital.

Dr.Joseph Tambil, the Effia Nkwanta Medical Director at a media engagement to seek for greater Hospital and media collaboration said, ‘our clients see you the media as the first port of call and that is why we entreat you to also get back to us and verify to put out not just a balanced story but one that ensures fairness to all parties involved’.

He said, the Hospital valued the media as an invaluable resource in the operations of the facility’s programmes and pleaded that such relationship was strengthened on the right pillars of accurate reportage and education even to the public.

The Medical Director later announce
d the progress of various infrastructure development within the Hospital to give it a face-lift.

He, however, noted that staff attrition was becoming a matter of concern to the facility which had already lost 40 professionals to greener pastures elsewhere.

The shortfall was deeply affecting service delivery, ‘it can be challenging for the facility in the future as others are in the process of exiting.’

Meanwhile, the rate of health workers’ attrition was described as unprecedented in the country’s history fueled by the global shortage of health workers due to the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with the current economic conditions.

The latest Ghana Human Development report asserted that 24 percent of nurses trained in Ghana were currently working abroad due to poor working conditions in the country.

The situation was even more critical for doctors trained in Ghana, with 50 percent having left the country making the Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital, the only referral facility in the Western Region, according to
the Medical Director, suffering same.

Already, 40 health professionals have left in the past 12 months for greener pastures as a hundred more have requested leave from work without pay.

Mr. Desmond Cudjoe, the Western Regional Chairman of the Ghana Journalists Association was thankful for the engagement and asked that it was periodic.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr. Rocky Tettedzie, a Physician Assistant at the Pleasant Medical Centre, has emphasised the importance of preventing and detecting cervical cancer early.

Mr. Tettedzie said this during a talk on preventive healthcare as part of the Ghana Journalists Association’s (GJA) 75th anniversary health screening in Tema.

He explained that cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women globally, caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), which is mainly transmitted through sexual intercourse.

He said the symptoms of cervical cancer include abnormal vaginal discharge, bleeding, and pain during sexual intercourse.

The physician assistant stressed the importance of condom use, and vaccination against HPV as primary prevention measures.

He also emphasised the need for screening and treatment of pre-cancerous lesions as secondary prevention and the diagnosis and treatment of invasive cervical cancer as tertiary prevention.

Mr. Tettedzie encouraged individuals to consult their physicians immediately they
notice symptoms suggestive of cervical cancer, emphasising that early detection and treatment could cure the disease.

He also addressed the importance of safe sexual practices, encouraging individuals to take responsibility for their health.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr Rocky Tettedzie, a Physician Assistant at the Pleasant Medical Centre, has cautioned the public against the practice of taking drugs before being diagnosed with a health condition. 

Mr Tettedzie emphasised that this approach is not an effective preventive strategy and highlighted the risks and effects associated with self-medicating prior to receiving a proper diagnosis from healthcare professionals. 

Speaking at the 75th Anniversary of the Ghana Journalists Association-Tema Chapter on the topic ‘Preventive Healthcare,’ he explained that many individuals resort to self-medication upon experiencing some symptoms, often assuming they have malaria, and promptly obtain anti-malarial drugs without diagnosis. 

He said that some symptoms mimicking malaria might indicate a different health condition, and using drugs before a proper diagnosis can mask the actual condition, leading to delayed or incorrect treatment. 

‘Taking drugs that have not been prescribed can cause side effects or adverse reactions, which c
an either worsen health conditions or prevent protection,’ he said. 

He added that, while there are anti-malarial drugs available for preventive use, especially for travellers visiting malaria-prone areas, these are prescribed based on the specific malaria strain in the region. 

He stated that, ‘anti-malaria drugs used for treatment are different from those used for prevention, so taking malaria drugs without being diagnosed, does not provide the sustained protective effect needed to prevent malaria.’ 

Mr. Tettedzie also stressed that medication taken without diagnosis may not be the right type of dosage needed to prevent a health condition, therefore rendering them ineffective, and the misuse of these drugs can lead to drug resistance, making medications less effective or ineffective for treating actual health conditions in the future. 

He advised that to avoid or reduce the risk of developing health problems, it is safer to take preventive measures such as vaccinations to ward off infectious diseases, r
outine medical examinations, and adopting healthy lifestyle behaviours like eating a balanced diet, regular physical activity, good hand hygiene, and following safe sex practices. 

Source: Ghana News Agency