L' Observateur Burundi

Madam Monica Sadungu, Upper East Regional Public Health Nurse, Ghana Health Service (GHS), has called for collaboration among nurses and midwives in the Region to reduce maternal mortality.

She said if midwives attended to expectant mothers, especially in rural health facilities and needed to refer to higher facilities, there was a need for effective communication between them and their counterparts at the receiving facilities.

‘When we collaborate as nurses and midwives on cases we manage and need to refer, we have to properly inform our colleagues in the next facility. When that happens, they will be well-informed about the patient and continue with the care,’ she said.

She emphasized a need for nurses and midwives at receiving facilities to give feedback on patients’ conditions to the referred facility.

Madam Sadungu, who is also a midwife with decades of experience, said this at a stakeholder engagement during the sharing of an audiovisual documentary on Maternal and Child Health (MCH) innovations in
the Region.

The meeting was organized by the Participatory Action for Rural Development Alternatives (PARDA), a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) on health, with technical and financial support from Oxfam in Ghana, an international NGO.

Madam Sadungu attributed some maternal deaths in the Region to the inability of some midwives to refer to the previous obstetric history of pregnant women to enable them to appropriately render services.

‘So, this call is not only for midwives but all nurses across the various facilities. With teamwork, we shall succeed,’ the Public Health nurse added.

Dr Michael Wombeogo, Executive Director of PARDA, said if officials of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) worked in a team with stakeholders in the health delivery system, maternal mortality would significantly be reduced if not prevented.

He said PARDA since 2009 started the MCH programme, which was implemented in eight Districts and in each District, was implemented in three communities totalling 24 communities in the Regio
n and the stakeholder engagement intended to share achievements and impact of the programme with officials of the GHS.

‘I remember in 2014, Upper East was leading in maternal and child mortality reduction in Ghana, and it was all about what we were doing differently in the various communities in the districts.

Dr Wombeogo said if the GHS could upscale and improve on what was started, maternal and child morbidity would be reduced to meet Sustainable Development Goal Three.

He advocated men’s participation in the entire pregnancy cycle of their partners, saying ‘Men cannot carry a pregnancy, but they must support their partners to carry the pregnancy with love. Whatever love they show to their pregnant wife, the same love is transferred to the unborn child.

‘So, the importance of the man in the life of the pregnant woman cannot be underestimated, and that is why we want to advocate that the presence of the spouse through ante-natal Clinic, labour and through delivery is very significant,’ he said.

Mr. Moha
mmed Mahamud, Programme Manager, of Accountable Governance of Oxfam in Ghana, said the objective of Oxfam was to ensure that there was no injustice anywhere in the world and noted that Oxfam believed injustice anywhere was injustice everywhere.

‘So, when we provide this kind of support, the idea is to first provide access to the excluded and marginalized communities and also to show to people that there are solutions to dealing with the problems that we encounter in our communities,’ he said.

Mr Mahamud noted that the initiative was not intended to fill gaps but to show the government the way to deal with the issue of MCH, ‘So when we found that there was an issue to do with MCH in Upper East, we came out with this package together with PARDA.

‘And the aim was not just to give them money to fill the gap that government had left, but to tell government actors that this is one of the ways we can deal with MCH issues,’ he said.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Some commercial drivers plying their trade within the Greater Accra and Eastern Regions have been trained in how to resuscitate a person with cardiac arrest and administer first aid to injured persons.?

The training brought together 20 drivers who were equipped with essential skills and knowledge in first aid administration and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for people who have suffered cardiac arrest.

Health experts say cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a lifesaving technique that is useful in many emergencies in which someone’s breathing or heartbeat has stopped.?

The training exercise was organised by Jadarls Foundation, in partnership with KGL Foundation as part of the ‘Drive to Safe’ road safety campaign and with technical support from the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC).

The drivers ply their trade on the Accra – Kumasi Highway and Accra – Eastern Region Highway and were drawn from the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU), Progressive Transport Owners Association (PROTOA) a
nd Cooperative Drivers Union.

They were taken through hands-on CPR training (also called chest-only CPR or Compression-only CPR) where the first aider must take some emergency response protocols to ensure the safety of passengers and fellow road users.

These protocols are ensuring a safe environment, ascertaining consciousness or otherwise of the person, if the person is unconscious, tap the shoulder and ask loudly ‘Are you ok?’, direct someone to call 112 (ambulance) or do that himself if the need be before beginning CPR.

Madam Aisha Asante, Basic Life Support Instructor, UGMC, said, that CPR is a basic technique that every individual must learn to help one another in our communities, adding that it required training because the strength needed to resuscitate adults, children from age one to eight, and babies less than one year varies.?

She said CPR must be done quickly after the cardiac arrest and after the first aider had followed the safety protocols to avoid brain death if the brain had not received
oxygenated blood between 4 to 10 minutes.?

‘CPR applications do not give 100 per cent survival but the chances of being resuscitated are high. There must be 100 to 120 compressions per minute and after 10 minutes without oxygenated blood to the brain, the brain is damaged,’ Madam Asante said.?

Mr. Edmund Agbeve, Project Lead, Jadarls Foundation, said there was a need for improved emergency response skills among commercial drivers, with a focus on alarming accidents and casualties where an estimated 21,593 vehicles were involved in accidents with 1,985 deaths and 13,109 injuries between January to October 2022.

‘This initiative goes beyond imparting skills; it’s about instilling a culture of preparedness and swift response among our drivers. Equipped with CPR and first aid knowledge, they can save lives and mitigate the impact of accidents on our roads,’ he added.?

Mr Moro Ayana Sanda, Welfare Officer, Madina – Akuapem Station of GPRTU, said: ‘This exercise is a novelty for us and has given us the skills a
nd courage to help passengers and all people. We have a duty to educate our colleagues and transfer the knowledge we have acquired here to them. We look forward to the Foundations for periodic training.’

Participants were provided with first aid kits, educative booklets, and posters to support their learning and application of acquired skills.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Women have been tasked to seek healthcare for themselves as they provide care for their families and work as professionals in their respective endeavours.

Brigadier General Felicia Twum- Barima, former Defence Attache’ of Cote’ d’Ivoire, urged women not to relegate their health to the backburner while they care for others or restore health to others.

She noted that often women in their bid to provide care for families and work as professionals turned to forget about their healthcare needs or relegated their health to the background.

‘As mothers let’s remember that we can only give care if we are fit ourselves. Our time spent networking with each other will help us to find balance between work and leisure.’

Brigadier General Twum-Barima was speaking at the maiden edition of the 37 Military Hospital’s Mother’s Day celebration held in Accra.

The day was used to celebrate the contribution of women, especially staff of the hospital and care givers and mothers whose children were on admission within the hospit
al.

The day, which was under the theme: ‘ Ena’s Health is key,’ sought to empower women with health ideas that ensured good health, happiness and longevity.

The occasion also brought together clinicians who spoke stress management, basic diet tips and check- ups on women health.

It was laced with cooking competition and provision of awards to some outstanding women at the hospital.

Brigadier General Twum-Barima, who was the chairperson for the occasion, commended the hospital for setting aside a day to recognize and appreciate mothers and females of the various units.

According to her, review of literature and statistics indicated that healthcare workers faced many challenges and hazards to their health as compared to the general population.

‘From burn out to infections, exposure to chemicals among several others, our female caregivers face daily hazards while they care for others. Often, they give their best working tirelessly to restore health of others and neglect or relegate their health to the burn
er,’ she said.

Brigadier General Twum Barima recalled that women turned to give their best in various roles in their bid to possess qualities such as empathy, resilience, diligence and ability to mentor others.

According to her these attributes were also characteristics of every professional health worker who strive for excellence.

Colonel Francisca Aba Amakyi, Chief Nursing Officer, 37 Military Hospital, said Mother’s Day celebrations was going to be held annually to enable maximum participation of women, especially care givers at the hospital.

According to Colonel Amakyi the hospital would also used the occasion to award women and individuals special honours.

Panelists, comprising clinicians, called on women to engage in regular exercises, reduce the intake of sugary beverages, drink more water, and feed their minds with positivity.

Some staff of the hospital took time of their busy schedules to participate in a cooking competition held at the Officers Mess while various companies exhibited their prod
ucts during an exhibition.

Source: Ghana News Agency