Author: Nigeria Health Watch

President Muhammadu Buhari and other global leaders gathered in London for a two-day Global Education Summit that aims to raise US$5 billion for education globally. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted school systems, resulting in school closures in 2020, with many schools turning to virtual learning where it was possible. A recent report found that in low middle-income countries, less than a third of students are back to having in-person lessons. It is therefore more important than ever to shift our gaze to the impact of the pandemic on the education of our children and their short- and long-term health. The goals of the summit are…

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The World Health Organisation has reported that each year, between 5.7 and 8.4 million people die due to poor quality care in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and this accounts for 15 percent of overall deaths. Majority of affected LMICs record lost productivity due to poor quality care, indicating that about $1.4 to $1.6 trillion is lost annually. Why Quality Maternal Health Medicines is a Critical Issue Quality care is a critical issue for maternal and new-born health. It is estimated that 6 in 10 neonatal conditions and half of maternal deaths in poorer countries are due to poor quality services. As…

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As the COVID-19 virus spread across the world in 2020, the world was gripped by the massive global health crisis. Countries around the world were plunged into chaos as the virus travelled at liberty across national borders. In response, people and governments turned to the scientific community for answers how to contain the rapid spread of the virus. From the laboratory in Wuhan that brought attention to the virus to the scientists and the pharmaceutical industry that developed the vaccines now being used around the world, scientists and epidemiologists worldwide rose to prominence as countries depended on them to guide…

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Sanitation and hygiene are cost-effective approaches against infectious diseases. However, this relatively inexpensive way of preventing infectious diseases seems to be neglected in most markets in Nigeria. The World Health Organisation (WHO) reports that an estimated 100 million Nigerians lacks basic sanitation facilities. The poor sanitation in Nigeria’s markets should be a matter of greater concern to buyers, sellers and policymakers. Shoppers often have to walk past open gutters and discarded refuse as they move about the marketplace, traders sell amidst the refuse dumps, and so shoppers are left with limited options, but to buy their food items from the dirty…

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I struggled with feelings of anxiety and depression for nine months during my first pregnancy in 2016. I spoke with my gynaecologist several times about my different mood swings, but he felt I should be excited because I was having a baby. Sometimes I felt happy about having a baby, but most times I felt sad. I was so forgetful, I cried a lot and was unable to concentrate at work. The mood swings continued after I had my baby. I often felt unhappy and was easily angered. My mother-in-law visited me at the hospital and noticed that I was…

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In Nigeria, systemic gaps in the quality of maternal care includes the lack of life-saving medical equipment, the low adoption of the Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response (MPDSR) in facilities, and the ineffectiveness of MPDSR platforms and their inability to translate to better quality of care. These are challenges that must be addressed to close the gaps in quality healthcare. Understanding current solutions being implemented and Quality of Care (QoC) gaps, provides blueprints for implementing scalable and sustainable solutions. These blueprints help us understand how to focus the advocacy for better maternal health care in Nigeria. Systematic measurements…

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Vaccines are vital to the prevention and control of infectious-disease outbreaks. They protect us from the time we are children into adulthood. Today there are vaccines available to protect against at least 20 diseases, such as diphtheria, tetanus, influenza and measles. Together, these vaccines save the lives of up to 3 million people every year. Stopping a pandemic requires using all the tools we have available. While wearing masks and physical distancing helps reduce our chances of being exposed to the virus or spreading it to others, these measures are not enough. The COVID-19 vaccine is a critical tool in the…

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