Kenya to Host East Africa Center for Disease Control

After a successful capacity assessment conducted by experts from various international health bodies such as World Health Organization (WHO), African Union (AU), US CDC and China CDC, Kenya has been selected to host the Eastern Africa Regional Collaborating Center of the Africa Centers for Disease Control (CDC). This was disclosed by the Health Ministry in a statement earlier this month.

According to the statement, the Africa CDC intends to use this center to monitor and address public health issues in the region as well as to monitor the response to and handling of emergencies and outbreaks within the region.

Kenya is said to have earned hosting rights because of the strength of it's disease surveillance systems and how it was engaged in sending health experts to Liberia and Sierra-Leone during the Ebola epidemic.

There will be a formal endorsement of Kenya to function in her new capacity by the Heads of state during the African Union (AU) summit. Other regional collaborating centers of Africa CDC are: Egypt, Gabon, Nigeria and Zambia.

Also included in the statement was the fact that, “The award is expected to strengthen the country’s health systems by enhancing disease surveillance capacity in terms of infrastructure and human resources, disease outbreak alert systems as well as improve laboratory capacity.”

This is a positive and commendable development and the health sector of Kenya is sure to experience a boost as a result of this.
 
Written By: Ozioma Paul

Improving the state of Health in Kenya

In recent times, there has been an increase in the support from external bodies; international and corporate organizations to improve the state of health in African nations. One of such supports was recently given to Tesla Cancer Hospital, Kenya by their health technology partner, GE Healthcare.

GE healthcare is set to provide the most current Imaging technology from GE to help doctors in diagnosing. It is also to boost the confidence of both the doctors and patients during the process of diagnosing cancer and other non-transmissible disease.

With the projections of the World Health Organization that by 2030, in sub-saharan Africa, Non-transmissible or Non-communicable Diseases (NCD) will be the leading cause of death; dealing with this class of diseases has become a top priority in Kenya's health system.

The key to successful treatment lies in early detection, prompt diagnosis and effective treatment. Among Non-communicable disease, the major cause of concern is the increasingly growing rate of cancer as it ranks third among the largest causes of death in Kenya.

Because of limited resources, screening services for cancer takes too long and most times, as the patients wait, the cancer spreads uncontrollably and often times leads to death.

The Telsa Cancer Hospital is set to provide high quality, world-class oncology services to cancer patients coupled with their latest diagnostic technologies for better cancer care. Their health technology partner: GE, is set to provide them with a radiopharmacy unit which would give room for drug administration that aids effective diagnostics, and some imaging technologies such as Ultrasound, Computed and Positron Emission Tomography, Magnetic Resonance, clinical solutions, and Installation of the first Cyclotron in Kenya.

The chairman of Tesla Cancer Hospital stated that "With the rapid rise of cancer and other forms of non-communicable disease in Kenya, there is a significant opportunity to strengthen health services to improve standards of care. This hospital will help Kenyans across the country, many of whom have been financially and emotionally affected by the impact of disease. We will also improve the skill level of medical professionals in our community."

This new development in Telsa Cancer Center will largely equip doctors and oncologists with latest technologies for diagnostics and would go a long way in fighting cancer and other non-communicable diseases.

Culled from: Vanguard news

Written by: Paul Ozioma

Celebrating Impact: Cradle count; A new mobile app designed to help reduce infant/maternal mortality in Nigeria ....

A new mobile application that can help to reduce the scourge of infant and maternal mortality has been developed by a young and innovative Nigerian, Miss K. Nwokolo. This mobile application is called Cradle count.

It is to help reduce to the barest minimum errors in estimating the expected date of delivery, since one of the major challenges faced by pregnant women in Nigeria and in Africa at large, is unexpected delivery which in many cases have led to delivery related complications resulting in infant and maternal mortality.

This is very promising I must say because currently about ninety nine percent of the 830 daily maternal mortality cases that occur globally are recorded in Africa. One could easily link this trend to the poor infrastructural health facilities and inaccessible community health services, hence, tackling obvious and preventable causes like unexpected delivery can be a big pass in tackling infant and maternal mortality.

Improved access to skilled care during and after delivery, can lead to significant reductions in childbirth/delivery related complications. With the use of this mobile phone application proper preparations for skilled birth attendants at birth can be made.

Basically what this mobile phone application does is to inform pregnant women of the number of days left to the delivery of the baby and it has programmed alerts that remind pregnant mothers to register and follow up with their antenatal care provider.

This is a proactive approach to the prevention of cases of infant and maternal mortality. In a statement obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) earlier this month in Lagos, the innovative health care app could revolutionize the health sector in Nigeria and Africa by helping to reduce the number of deliveries that take place in the home setting without the assistance of skilled birth attendants.

Written By Jimoh Waliu

Celebrating Impact : A Tribute to Humanitarian Health Workers

As we mark the 2015 World Humanitarian Day, we join the rest of the world to appreciate all health workers who have made huge sacrifices by serving in conflict or war zones, natural disasters, insurgencies, epidemics and many more life threatening emergencies.

We acknowledge that many lives have been lost in these sacrificial endeavors to maintain, livelihood, peace, sanity, decorum, and health in a bid to aid survival and preserve lives in tough circumstances.

Our hearts go to the families of the 512  health workers who lost their lives on the front lines while serving in West Africa (Guinea, Liberia and Sierra leone) during the heat of the currently receding Ebola epidemic.

We also appreciate the Ebola health worker survivors who got infected while working on the front lines to save lives as the epidemic raged on. Some of whom today, may be battling the aftermath of the Ebola infection even after being declared free of the virus.

South Sudan, Central African Republic, Burundi, Northern Nigeria have been impacted in no little way by conflicts in recent times and the effects of these impacts were cushioned by the health workers who dedicated themselves to reducing and a times eliminating the health impacts of the crisis on the threatened and displaced population.

They helped to enhance survival and even to improve to a certain extent the quality of life of the people and communities affected by these humanitarian emergencies.

Across the globe we say thank you to all humanitarian health workers.

It is clearly understood that humanitarian needs across the globe are tremendous and keep increasing, with more than 60 million people in different regions globally in need of humanitarian assistance today.

We call on every member of the public to commit themselves to humanitarianism in whatever capacity they deem fit.  

Once again we say you are highly appreciated.
Thank You for giving to humanity.

Africa's Long Journey to Eradicate Polio : Hope Rising ....

The journey to a polio free world began in 1988. At the time 125 countries reported 350,000 cases of the disease.

Over the years; the Americas, Europe and South-Eastern Asia were declared polio-free with the latest being India and 10 other countries in the South East Asian region declared polio free in March 2014 which was after they had gone 3 years without any case of polio detected within the region.

In year 2013, Nigeria; the then polio hub in Africa still saw 416 cases of the disease. This was at the time a huge progress towards polio eradication within Africa and globally.

On the 24th of July 2014, Nigeria for the first time since the Global Polio Eradication Initiative began about 27 years ago, did not record any case of the wild polio virus in a one year period.

This victory is still however being celebrated cautiously as data verification to ascertain this is in process. Moreover the country still needs to go two more years without any case of polio before she can be declared polio free indeed.

In Africa as a whole, August 11 2015 marked a whole year without a single case of the wild polio virus recorded within the continent. The last case within the continent was recorded in Somalia on the 11th of August 2014.

With Polio being a dreaded debilitating disease governments, non governmental organizations, security forces and every group involved in the fight is being called upon to watch out for any form of slackness or apathy at this precarious point in this ongoing battle.

The security crisis in Northern Nigeria is a source of serious concern as this has caused several set backs and lulls in the progress made over the years.
Children in hard to reach and conflict volatile areas have had to go unvaccinated for these reasons and more; one of which is also lack of cooperation and trust between the parents or caregivers and the government.


In February of year 2013, nine polio vaccinators were shot and killed at health centers in Northern Nigeria.

With records of attacks against vaccinators in this region it is difficult to assume that every child in these conflict zones and hard to reach regions is vaccinated against polio.

The concern is that these unvaccinated children may create a set back in the already made progress.
In some of the said areas, currently the herd immunity is said to be about 75%. This is not the goal, however at this point we can safely say that we are close. 
According to Dr Tunji Funsho who is the Chairman of the Nigeria National Polio Plus Committee for Rotary International; " .... This gives us some level of comfort that majority of the children are covered so the danger of non-immunized children being infected with polio virus is not there,"

Furthermore, Dr Hamid Jafari, of the WHO Polio Eradication Initiative has said that :

"The focus remains on continuing to vaccinate children, no matter where they live, and to strengthen surveillance everywhere."

It is our hope that Nigeria and the rest of Africa will maintain this feat so that the global goal for a Polio free world can be realized in full.

Funding Innovation Explosion for the Nigerian health sector

The Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria together with partners have created the Nigeria Health Innovation Marketplace to improve the state of health care in Nigeria through technology innovations and the incubation of outstanding ideas and innovations to ensure their successful implementation.

This competition seeks to identify, celebrate and reward promising innovations that address critical challenges in the country's health sector.

The premier edition of the health hackathon was held in February 2014 where Iqube labs emerged winners through their innovative data and SMS service for the health sector.

Currently the 2015 edition is ongoing and some 42 ideas have reached the second stage.
The race to determine the final winners of this year's edition is still on going.
The first prize winners will be going home with $100,000 in awards, second prize : $ 50,000 in awards and the third prize $ 30,000 in awards.

It is our belief that the successful implementation of these ideas will bring Nigeria closer to the dream to achieve health for all.

Celebrating Impact : How young girls in Nigeria are using technology to drive waste disposal

It is wonderful to note that girls are getting more involved in changing and re-shaping the society.

A team of four brilliant high school students from Nigeria recently emerged the winners of the Technovation Challenge World Pitch competition which took place in San Francisco USA.

The girls are Praise David - Oku, Sonam Kumar, Nnmessoma Ogbonna and Grace Akpoiroro.
They worked as a team to develop a mobile app named 'Discardious' to help solve the solid waste disposal problem in Nigeria.

380 apps from 64 countries of the world were submitted.

Praise David-Oku, on behalf of the team in a statement to the press said that the competition totally changed their views of technology. “It has given our team a platform to use technology to solve problems in our community."

The problem of waste disposal in Nigeria is enormous, with many failed government and community initiatives.

An estimated 75% of the Nigerian population is said to suffer from health challenges such as malaria, diarrhea, dysentery and yellow fever due to the improper disposal of wastes.

'Discardious' is an android based app, which uses low cost technology to proffer a lasting solution to the problem of waste disposal.  
Once Subscribed, clients are able to order waste disposal services at an affordable fee which will be paid on arrival.

Solid waste disposal and management has been identified as the most pressing environmental problem in present day Nigeria. 
With a teeming population of over 170 million, Nigeria happens to be one of the largest producers of solid waste in Africa. 
Several policies and regulations have not been able to tackle the problem and solid waste is assuming alarming and disturbing proportions as the days go by.

3.2 million tons of solid waste is generated annually in Nigeria, of which only about 20-30% is collected properly.

The blockage of sewers and drainage systems, and the pollution and choking of water bodies are all resultant effects of a poor and almost non functioning solid waste disposal system.

Household and industrial wastes, as well as waste generated due to commercial activities may litter the immediate surroundings. 

Improper collection and disposal of municipal wastes is the trigger for an unavoidable environmental catastrophe which may occur if things continue in this manner.
Nigeria currently lacks adequate budgetary allocations for the implementation of an integrated waste management program across the 36 States.

A predicted population explosion in African cities over the next 40 years may result in a population that is more than three times of what we have today. This prediction is a pointer to the enormous task ahead of us in tackling the issue of waste disposal before it becomes a scourge.

Lack of political will, inadequate budgetary allocations as well as lack of properly trained personnel in solid waste disposal and management have brought us to this point.

Tackling the issue of solid waste disposal will result in a cleaner and healthier environment.

Diseases such as malaria which have become endemic in African communities can be eradicated if the environment can be kept clean.

What I see the business venture of these girls turning into is a logistic system for solid waste disposal which should be supported by governments and NGOs and should be rolled out in all the 36 states of the country.

Praise David-Oku, Sonam Kumar, Nmesoma Ogbonna, and Grace Akpoiroro as they developed a - See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/07/four-brilliant-nigerian-girls-win-2015-global-technovation-challenge/#sthash.LpR9gRu6.dpuf

Technovation Challenge world pitch which held at San Francisco, USA. The winning team comprised of four brilliant girls: Praise David-Oku, Sonam Kumar, Nmesoma Ogbonna, and Grace Akpoiroro as they developed a mobile app to tackle waste disposal challenge in Nigeria. They pitched their app called, ‘Discardious’. - See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/07/four-brilliant-nigerian-girls-win-2015-global-technovation-challenge/#sthash.LpR9gRu6.dpuf

Technovation Challenge world pitch which held at San Francisco, USA. The winning team comprised of four brilliant girls: Praise David-Oku, Sonam Kumar, Nmesoma Ogbonna, and Grace Akpoiroro as they developed a mobile app to tackle waste disposal challenge in Nigeria. They pitched their app called, ‘Discardious’. - See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/07/four-brilliant-nigerian-girls-win-2015-global-technovation-challenge/#sthash.LpR9gRu6.dpuf

Technovation Challenge world pitch which held at San Francisco, USA. The winning team comprised of four brilliant girls: Praise David-Oku, Sonam Kumar, Nmesoma Ogbonna, and Grace Akpoiroro as they developed a mobile app to tackle waste disposal challenge in Nigeria. They pitched their app called, ‘Discardious’. - See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/07/four-brilliant-nigerian-girls-win-2015-global-technovation-challenge/#sthash.LpR9gRu6.dpuf

Technovation Challenge world pitch which held at San Francisco, USA. The winning team comprised of four brilliant girls: Praise David-Oku, Sonam Kumar, Nmesoma Ogbonna, and Grace Akpoiroro as they developed a mobile app to tackle waste disposal challenge in Nigeria. They pitched their app called, ‘Discardious’. - See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/07/four-brilliant-nigerian-girls-win-2015-global-technovation-challenge/#sthash.LpR9gRu6.dpuf

Celebrating Impact : Alain Nteff (Co-founder Gifted Mom)

Today we dedicate our post to our heroes who have impacted the lives of Africans in diverse ways in the pursuit of achieving equity in health care and improving our health systems.

These men didn't just talk about a need, they did something about it.

Their contributions may not have changed the world, but have helped in various capacities to stem the tide of maternal and infant death in the world.

Alain Nteff (Co-founder Gifted Mom)

"The problem of maternal and infant death is not a woman issue -- it's a humanitarian issue. Everybody should take seriously. We all have mothers, we all have sisters, and it's not just a problem for women or girls ...." Alain Nteff

23 year old Ntef, together with the Mobile alliance for maternal action created a mobile application that sends clinic and vaccination alerts to pregnant women and mothers of infants in Cameroon.

A country with a maternal mortality rate of 590 per 100000 live birth and has failed to meet the MDG target of 167/100000 live birth by 2015.

Health seeking behavior in Cameroon is poor with more than 64% of the women failing to seek postnatal care.

The need to create a low cost channel to educate women on when they should go for antenatal care and when they should take their babies for vaccination was evident.

"Our mission is really to create a world of mothers who are gifted. A world that is free of maternal and infant death -- a world of gifted moms," he says.

Currently there are about 3000 registered women in 18 villages, with a 20% increase in clinic attendance and about 200 health workers and medical students involved.

Through partnership with Local and International NGOs as well as hospitals, gifted mom has been able to provide life saving, low cost , mobile solutions to help improve maternal health and health outcomes in Cameroon.
The goal is to have reached about 5 million women across Africa by 2017.

Celebrating Impact : Alaak The Teacher ...

South Sudan has been at war for about 18 months now.

Conditions have been worsening and the International community is concerned about the ongoing brutality and the extent of war crimes against women and especially children.

Several people have been displaced by these circumstances and are scattered in surrounding localities.

A settlement in Northern Uganda has opened up her resources and has received the South Sudanese people well. They have freely shared of their own resources.

The need for a school was met by 'Alaak' a school teacher who also grew up in a Kenyan refugee camp.

In the words of Alaak, "A teacher is the one to open your eyes to see what you can become, I am sweating to open the way for them and I am sure there is a leader among them.”

Children from war torn South Sudan taking refuge in Uganda, have been given an opportunity to go to school in the Nyumanzi settlement of Northern Uganda.

31 year old Alaak, started the school with his own money after he arrived at the settlement about 11 months ago .

He was a school teacher himself before now and this made him see the need to educate the next generation in spite of the conflict.

He said in an interview that “War brings mental disturbances to children, If you give them education, they will grow up with a healthy brain.” Education he believes helps children deal with the horrors of war that they have witnessed or experienced.

His students and pupils are children aged 3 to 14 years, and the school is bursting at the seams due to the large number of children in the settlement who need to be educated with the meager resources available.

A local land owner, a teacher and also a former refugee offered his land to be used as a school when he heard of the school and the pressing need.

The children are not only taught to read and write, they are also taught the importance of prayer and living at peace with each other.

Alaak could not just sit by and watch, he had to do something. 

He did what was in his capacity to make a change by taking his time to educate the leaders of tomorrow.

What can you do, to change things around you today?

Medical Outreach on the Outskirts of Cotonou, Benin Republic in Pictures .....November 2011

Setting up

Stacks of medications

Still setting up

While on our way...

Pre departure briefing

The Villagers

The New Community Health Centre

Health/Nutrition Talk

Consulting

More Villagers at the Outreach

Consulting with an interpreter

Listening intently at the Health talk

Moi ...

Mothers with children listening and waiting to be seen