Category: Medical

Hope for Future Generations (HFFG), a Non Governmental Organisation with focus on health and youth development, has urged Queen Mothers to lead advocacy for domestic financing of immunisation to secure the future of children and mothers. Mrs. Cecilia Senoo, Executive Director , HFFG, said Queen mothers had strong influence in their local communities, hence, their active participation in leading advocacy was necessary. She made the call at a capacity building meeting on immunisation financing and awareness creation on new vaccines for selected Queen Mothers in Accra. The capacity building formed part of objectives in the Financing Immunisation Advocacy Response ( FAIR) Project to sensitise traditional and religious leaders to understand the issues as well as their roles and responsibilities to achieve objectives of the programme. The goal of the FAIR project is to advocate for greater domestic resource mobilisation and increased accountability for results in reaching zero-dose children and increasing immun isation coverage (including newly introduced vaccines). The objectives are to increase domestic resource mobilisation dedicated to PHC and immunisation service delivery, including vaccine procurement, to ensure timely payment of co-financing obligations and ensure new GAVI-supported vaccines are introduced and the country is aware and willing to meet any related increased co-financing. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), immunisation prevents between 2-3 million deaths globally annually and in Africa, vaccines have been instrumental in reducing the burden of diseases such as measles, polio, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), and hepatitis B. The Executive Director said domestic health financing in the country, particularly immunisation, had become critical as donor funding continued to dwindle gradually, adding that it was necessary to mobilise local resources to support the provision of vaccines in the country, should donor funding finally end. 'We are doing this because ther e will be a time when funding will seize and we have to take up the challenge and get resources for our own vaccines,' she said. She said the FAIR project was being undertaken by the HFFG and socioserve-Ghana to advocate and compel the government to increase funding for health, especially, immunisation. Mrs Senoo said under no circumstance should the country experience shortage of vaccines, as it could be detrimental to the health of beneficiaries, particularly, children and mothers. The Executive Director said Queen Mothers were role models and had the power to influence change in their local communities and encouraged them to get involved in leading the advocacy. 'We want to see you leading as mothers, wives and women in your communities. We need you to come out and speak to the people on the need to finance immunisation for children and their mothers.' 'You have so much power, so we want you to apply that power to lead advocacy to secure the future of our children in the country,' she stressed. The Q ueen Mothers were trained on key messages and strategies to enable them target and convince decision making personalities, including Members of parliament, District Chief Executives, Assembly Members, institutions and organisations as well as the public, using their existing structures. Queen Mothers, who spoke to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), expressed their readiness to support the agenda by influencing society to achieve desired objectives.. Nana Awo Kosi Otiuor I, Queen Mother of Swapo, Yilo Krobo Traditional Area, Somanya, said previous advocacies were effective and yielded positive results, saying: 'We are ever ready to take up the challenge to secure more vaccines to protect the lives of children and mothers in the country.' Source: Ghana News Agency

Reproductive Needs and Fitness Foundation (RENEF Foundation), an NGO has launched a nationwide outreach project to provide free kidney screening for Ghanaians to know their various kidney-related conditions. On the theme, 'Reigniting the Know Your Status on HIV, Substance Abuse Linked to Kidney Diseases,' the project, according to Miss Abigail Antwi-Baafi, the Executive Director of RENEF, a Sunyani-based health promotion organisation targeted to benefit more than 50,000 Ghanaians. Speaking at the launch of the project in Sunyani on Tuesday, Ms Antwi-Baafi expressed concern about the alarming prevalence of kidney disease in the country which was hovering around 13.3 per cent. She said though there was weak evidence in the country, it was believed that the rampant use of herbal medicines or substance abuse might account for the significantly increased incidence of chronic kidney disease among the younger population. Ms Antwi-Baafi called on all stakeholders, including the Ghana Health Service, the Food an d Drugs Authority of the Ghana Education Service and other relevant state and non-state actors to support the project to achieve desirable outcomes. 'Kidney is one of the top five causes of deaths at the medical ward of Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital,' Mr Atta Akoto Senior, an Executive of the Foundation stated, and attributed the high mortality rate to poor socio-economic status of patients. 'Most patients requiring dialysis services cannot afford it as management is not covered by the National Health Insurance Scheme and patients have to pay out of pocket. For those who can afford care, there is even unequal distribution of hemodialysis service,' he stated. Mr Akoto Snr. indicated the 2017 Renal Registry Data showed that there were 686 patients with end stage kidney disease on renal replacement therapy with the majority (96.4 per cent) on dialysis. There were only 24 patients who have had transplantation, he added, and expressed the hope that the project's implementation would greatly help to bring the situation under control. Dr Kofi Amo-Kodieh, the Bono Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service, lauded the project, commended the implementers and their partners, and called on everybody to support and make it successful. Madam Oscar Anita Akotey, Principal Regulatory Officer at the Bono Regional Office of the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), said several kidney diseases had been linked to excessive use and misuse of certain substances, including alcohol, tobacco products, drugs, cosmetics, and some harmful food ingredients. 'All of these have direct and indirect effects that can negatively impact kidney functioning,' she stated, and advised everybody to be mindful and avoid careless use of certain food ingredients, drugs, and cosmetic products. Hundreds of residents, including students, market women, public sector and health workers and children underwent the screening exercise, led by some health officials at the launch. Source: Ghana News Agency

Director General for the International Planned Parenthood Federation (1PPF), Dr Alvaro Bermejo says Ghana need to redefine the age at which young people are introduced to sexual information and learning. 'You can do this by assessing the number of adolescents who started having sex before age 15 and the number of young persons who had relevant information on sex before they had sex,' he said. Addressing the media in Accra after a tour and inspection of some project sites of the Planned Parenthood Association of Ghana (PPAG), Dr Bermejo said, reviewing the age for sexual learning would help reduce the high numbers of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) and unwanted pregnancies. 'Speaking to some young people during my visit, I realized that access to information and services on Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) for young people and unmarried women was difficult and happening too late at a time when they were already sexually active due to stigma and discrimination,' he said. He said although Ghana has a good legal framework on SHRH and women's health, implementation of the frameworks had not been impressive because SRHR is an area where governments find it difficult to act effectively although those are the formative years. 'The IPPF will use the experiences gathered from the field visit to inform policy and shape how governments and legislative frameworks can improve the environment on SRHR for adolescents and young people,' he said. Dr Bermejo said his visit to Ghana was in line with the IPPFs aim to increase its investments in Africa, at a time when gains in maternal mortality, teenage pregnancy, contraceptive usage, HIV infections in adolescents had flattened in the last five years. 'In Ghana for example the improvement in addressing these issues is not continuing, so we want to see what is behind this and make the commitment to put that in the right trajectory and how to support the PPAG while empowering the association to become financially independent,' he stated. Commenting on the 20- year mark of the HIV Antiretroviral (ARV) therapy in Ghana, the IPPF leader said ARVs had saved so many lives than the world ever thought, by changing the strategy of HIV in the world. Dr Bermejo said mobilization of affected communities had changed the way people living with HIV infections have been involved in access to ARV. He said global health leaders were considering the use of ARVs as a preventive tool for persons who were at high risk of contracting the disease and do not want to get infected. Madam Abena Adubea Amoah, Director for PPAG, said with the dwindling of global funding for SHRH, Ghana periodically records a stock out in family planning commodities and condoms, hence the rise in teenage pregnancies, unsafe abortions, and HIV infections. The IPPF is a leading and largest global organization providing sexual and reproductive health services in 142 countries and committed to improving the sexual and reproductive health and rights of young people through its 40,000 clinics across the world. It also advocates gender equality to ensure that women, girls, and young people realize their rights, have control over their own bodies, lives, and their future. The Planned Parenthood Association of Ghana, ably represent the IPPF in the country. Source: Ghana News Agency

Mr David Agbokpe, the Ketu South Municipal Director of Health Services, has expressed the hope that the municipality will achieve its Universal Health Coverage (UHC) target, ensuring residents have access to healthcare without financial hardship by 2030. He said the contributions of stakeholders and benevolent individuals towards ensuring quality health service provision had been very encouraging. It would help ensure that all people had timely access to high quality healthcare services irrespective of their ability to pay at the point of use as envisioned under the UHC, he said. Mr Agbokpe disclosed this at the Directorate's 2023 Programme of Work (PoW) Review, which is a forum to give feedback to stakeholders in health on the performance of the Directorate, its successes and challenges. He said such support and collaborations were much appreciated and encouraged in society to aid service provision. 'I am extremely happy that with little push, the UHC will be achieved come the end of 2030,' he said. Mr Agbokpe mentioned Mr Felix Akakpo (Akonta) as one of the individuals that supported the construction of a family health unit, maternity block and community information centre at Lente-Wute Community-Based Health Planning and Services (CHPS). Others were Mr Futukpor Dzisah of Klikor, who constructed the Klikor Health Centre, refurbished and expanded the Agbozume Health Centre, and 'Let Your Light Shine Enterprise' at Denu. He acknowledged Madam Abla Dzifa Gomashie, the Member of Parliament, for supporting the annual eye screening exercise in the municipality. He said Mr Maxwell Koffie Lugudor, the Municipal Chief Executive, was working with the Assemblyman and opinion leaders to extend electricity and water to the newly built CHPS compound at Amutinu. He said CHPS implementation was one key area of interest to ensure the achievement of UHC. The municipality currently has 35 operationalised CHPS facilities out of the 45 demarcated, Mr Agbokpey said, and that plans were advanced to operationalise more of th ose compounds at Amutinu and Agbevekope. 'Network of practice, which is to complement CHPS activities toward achieving UHC has started in the municipality. Stakeholder engagement has been done…for full implementation,' he said. He, however, said the Municipality needed human resources, including doctors and general nurses, equipment and funds, to support its interventions such as vaccination and construction of CHPS compounds. He appealed for further support in those critical areas for effective and quality service delivery. Source: Ghana News Agency

The Government has released 14 million Euros to the contractors working on the Mother and Child Unit (MBU) project of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi to resume work. The Government has also released five million dollars to the contractors working on the Afari Military Hospital to complete that project. Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, the Minister of Finance, made this known when he paid a working visit to inspect the MBU project at the KATH. He said the contractors had agreed to resume work on the 900-bed capacity block within two weeks. The Minister said the Government was committed to completing all ongoing projects in the Ashanti Region, including the Sofoline interchange, the central market phase two project, the KATH Mother and Child block, the Kumasi International Airport and some road projects. 'The President of Ghana would make a big announcement in the coming days and the people of the Ashanti Region will have cause to be happy' Dr Amin Adam told journalists after the inspection. Pro fessor Otchere Addai-Mensah, the Chief Executive of KATH, said the main blocks of the hospital were undergoing a comprehensive renovation works under the 'Heal Kath Project' initiated by the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, as part of his legacy projects. He said currently, management of the hospital had adopted a phase-by-phase approach towards the project due to lack of space to move patients on admission in the various wards. The completion of the 900-bed Maternity block would be a welcome gesture since management would have more space to move patients and carry out the renovation works at the blocks, also known as GEE blocks, named after its contractor. Prof Addae-Mensah said aside the commitment to put KATH in good shape, the hospital lacked equipment and was working with one dialysis machine despite the huge number of patients who visited the facility for care. 'The difficult call I have had to make as CEO has been to ask patients to be sent to private facilities because of lack of equipment to tre at them,' he stated. Source: Ghana News Agency