Health
Nigerians should expect COVID-19 vaccines by January – Ehanire
Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, has said the country expects to receive the first batch of vaccines meant to combat COVID-19 by January.
He said this on Wednesday while addressing State House correspondents after the week’s virtual Federal Executive Council FEC meeting.
Ehanire further disclosed that the country was looking to get the vaccines from more than just one source, adding that the Ministry of Health had already commenced bilateral talks with manufacturing companies and countries that have developed solutions.
He, however, said storage of some types of vaccines and cost of storage were factors being considered in shopping for the products.
The minister said, “We have a technical working group working on the question of the vaccine. We have signed up with the World Health Organisation and GAVI for access to vaccines immediately they are available. But you know that these vaccines are new and the producers are, first of all, not giving any indemnity.
“The big countries where these vaccines are manufactured are of course giving themselves the priority to serve their own citizens first and we hope that the pressure from the World Health Organisation and GAVI (Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation) will be able to get a reserve for other countries which themselves are not manufacturing and be able to attend to what we signed up to; we signed up for the advanced market participation of the COVACS.
“If we are able to get our own, I think it should be by January, but there are two types of vaccines, as you have heard; there are those that haven to be in ultra-deep freezers, the MRNA types of vaccines, freezers that must give you at least -80 degrees. There’s another type that can be in a deep freezer of -20 and there’s another type that can be in a refrigerator of -2 degrees, which is regular refrigerator.”
He also said, “The one that is a regular refrigerator is easy in that you have many of that kind of refrigerators all over our country. -20 will also be easy because we have freezers, but the ultra-cold freezers we hardly have any in our country, therefore to receive and store those ultra-cold vaccines will require that we go purchase those ultra-cold freezers.
“So we are working on the costing and it might be which one we get first. We have to remember again that we have over 200 million citizens and finding a way to get enough to take care of our citizens. That means if we are able to get the vaccine that works well and does not cost us too much or cost of storage and delivery, that’s the one we’ll like.
“We are also having bilateral discussions, talking with manufacturers, some of them have written to us that they want to have talks with us, I think one is already having discussions in the Ministry of Health, the one that British and Russia team are putting together.”
He said the FG was working with them “because if we cannot get enough from one source, we should be able to get from other sources. So, we are looking at multiple sources. We had a conversation with United Arab Emirates. The ambassador came to see us and told us that they are buying vaccines from China and had tested them.
“So, they said they are introducing them to us. So, we said we would listen to them because the one that is effective and healthy in those countries and is available is the one we shall bring and that has also proven to be safe.”
Health
OSSAP-SDGs inaugurates 20-bed health centre in Oyo community
OSSAP-SDGs inaugurates 20-bed health centre in Oyo community
The Office of Senior Special Assistant on Sustainable Development Goals has inaugurated a 20-bed primary health centre and renovated the existing primary health facility at Isokun in the Oyo West area of Oyo State.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals (OSSAP-SDGs), Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, at a brief handover ceremony, thanked President Bola Tinubu for his leadership and dedication to collaborating with sub-national governments to deliver crucial interventions and accelerate the achievement of the SDGs in Nigeria.
Represented by Nura Ali Rano at the event, Orelope-Adefulire stressed the importance of the SDGs as a global call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure peace and prosperity for all by 2030.
She also spoke on the need to prioritize interventions with significant impact on multidimensional poverty, such as basic healthcare, vocational skills development and education, in alignment with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
She said strategic projects such as the Mother and Child Centre had become essential given the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Oyo Central Senator, Dr Yunus Akintunde, who facilitated the project, expressed his gratitude to President Tinubu and OSSAP-SDGs for selecting his constituency for the significant project.
He described the primary health centre as the biggest in Oyo State while emphasising the state’s commitment to fully utilising the facility, as part of a broader plan to of mitigation that will reduce the need for residents to seek medical treatment outside the constituency.
Archbishop Ayo Ladigbolu commended OSSAP-SDGs for the good job and bringing such a world-class facility to the Oyo central constituency.
Health
Physiotherapist: Cellphone, laptop use can increase dementia risk
Physiotherapist: Cellphone, laptop use can increase dementia risk
Using mobiles and laptops may increase the risk of dementia, a physiotherapist has warned.
His analysis suggests that the posture people adopt while using their devices can reduce blood flow to the brain, which leads to cognitive decline.
Research has previously shown that more time spent on cognitively passive behaviours — like watching TV — leads to an increased risk of dementia, regardless of physical activity levels. However, cognitively active passive activities — like using the computer — were associated with a lower dementia risk.
Abrahams who has reviewed research on the subject says ’emerging evidence and clinical trials have indicated the potential consequences for cognitive and neurological health’.
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“The persistent pressure on the arteries by holding your head in a forward position, as many people do when looking at their phones, can lead to a chronic reduction in the diameter of those arteries, potentially reducing the amount of blood which can reach the brain.
“Any restriction in these blood vessels may cause a decrease in blood flow to the brain, resulting in various brain-related diseases.”
According to Abrahams, Alzheimer’s disease is going to become more prevalent as the population ages, but his research points to daily habits of poor posture from staring down at our phones as a potential cause of an increase in cases.”
In his advice, he said “Hold your phone somewhere where you don’t need to bend forward. Take a positive step in your spine and brain health by using your phone when you can keep your neck in its natural alignment, and when you use a laptop, adjust your working environment to support a healthy posture.”
Physiotherapist: Cellphone, laptop use can increase dementia risk
Health
Sickle Cell Foundation, LUTH celebrate bone marrow transplant breakthrough
Sickle Cell Foundation, LUTH celebrate bone marrow transplant breakthrough
The first two Sickle Cell Disease patients admitted to the Sickle Cell Foundation of Nigeria/Lagos University Teaching Hospital, SCFN/LUTH, Bone Marrow Transplant Centre in Lagos, have been discharged and are under observation.
The patients, one paediatric and one adult, successfully underwent the first-of-its-kind Bone Marrow Transplant, BMT, in Nigeria and West Africa, heralding a groundbreaking achievement for Nigerian healthcare.
The feat was achieved at the state-of-the-art Centre following weeks of meticulous care and preparation, including chemotherapy, blood transfusions, and bone marrow stem cells harvested from family donors, then infused into the patients.
With this achievement, the SCFN in partnership with LUTH is the first non-profit organisation in Africa to lead a comprehensive bone marrow transplant initiative for sickle cell disorder.
The milestone marks a significant step forward in the treatment of sickle cell disease and other blood disorders and positions Nigeria as a hub in West Africa for advanced medical care particularly in hematology-oncology.
The Centre, equipped with advanced technology and staffed by highly skilled medical professionals, provides a comprehensive range of services for patients undergoing bone marrow transplants, even as no less than 127 potentially qualified patients are lined up to undergo the procedure.
The achievement is particularly significant for Nigeria, which has one of the highest burdens of SCD globally. Before the establishment of the center, Nigerian patients seeking bone marrow transplants had no option but to seek treatment abroad, often incurring significant costs and facing challenges related to access and affordability.
One of the mothers of the discharged patients said, “Our Bone Marrow Transplant experience has been remarkable, filled with hope and certainty. I felt confident in the exceptional care we received at the Sickle Cell Foundation Nigeria/LUTH BMT Centre. From the moment of admission to discharge, the medical staff provided round-the-clock attention,” said the mother of one of the discharged patients.
In the views of the Chairman, Board of Directors. Sickle Cell Foundation of Nigeria, Chief Tunde Afolabi, SCFN’s journey is far from over.
Sickle Cell Foundation, LUTH celebrate bone marrow transplant breakthrough
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