Category: Health

The ministry of Health has announced plans for an aggressive sensitization campaign against cancer and other incurable diseases.

The permanent secretary in the health Ministry( MINISANTE), Uzziel Ndagijimana, told IGIHE.com that as other diseases like malaria reduce, the incurable ones are on the increase. This is reason why the ministry is going to make much effort in fighting against them.

He said, “The ministry is planning to establish four centers at CHUK, King Faisal and others in charge of fighting against deadly diseases including cancer and make more sensitization to the citizens.”

Though less talked about, cancer is among the top killers of many people in the world for UN indicates that it is expected to kill 84 million from 2005 to 2015 if it is not fought.

Every year 4th February is a world day on the fighting cancer with making its test, thinking about it and ways to fight it. There are three ways the cancer may be cured: surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy.

Police in Rusizi district are looking for a nurse identified as Desiré Ngirabacu who is alleged to have killed a patient by the names Alphonse Muhigana by injecting him with an overdose of Peniciline anti-biotic.

The nurse disclosed details about the death through her close friend Apolline Uzamukunda who stays at the dispensary’s compound known as Gira Ubuzima located in Rusizi town.

Uzamukunda noted that the nurse gave her keys of the dispensary on 26th January 2012 in the evening something she has done before, then later called her to explain about the death of a patient whom she had locked in one of the dispensary’s rooms.

“When she first gave me the keys she looked uneasy. Later at about 7PM she called me on her cell phone to explain that she had unintentionally injected Muhigana 3 injections of peniciline anti biotic after which the patient reacted weirdly by vomiting and bleeding from his nose and acted as if he was epileptic.”

“She told me after seeing those scary signs she had no doubt that the patient would eventually die. She said she was afraid to face the family of the deceased due to fear of being sued or punished.”

“I think that’s why she ran away. The nurse has been a good person I wonder how she can do such a stupid thing,”she explained.

It is believed that the nurse ran to an undisclosed place since she’s nowhere to be found and neither her best friends know her whereabouts. She can’t be reached on her cell phone anymore.

The deceased was buried on 27th at Karambi cell in Nyanza district.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has confirmed the research findings that suggest use of hormonal contraception drugs may double the risk of acquiring HIV and transmitting it to a partner.

It’s against this development that WHO is convening a Technical Consultation of a multi-disciplinary group of experts from 31 January to 1 February 2012 to examine all evidence related to the potential effects of hormonal contraception on HIV acquisition, transmission, and disease progression.

WHO said in a statement that it was taking caution against making hasty changes to contraceptive policy or practice and would convene a meeting this year to discuss the study.

A recent study from the University of Washington in Seattle has revealed that contraceptives such as Depo Provera may double the chances that a woman would contract HIV. The study followed 3 790 couples in which one partner had HIV.

In couples where the woman used Depo Provera, the woman was nearly twice as likely to acquire HIV infections from their infected partners as those who used no contraception. Those women were also twice as likely to transmit the infections to their partners.

Depo Provera, is a contraceptive injection used by most women in sub-Saharan Africa for birth control.

The Rwanda government is currently in an intensified effort to sensitise couples on birth control where the use of Depo povera is dominantly administered.

The contraceptives provide protection against pregnancy for up to 14 weeks, but the injection must be received once every 12 weeks to remain fully protected.

WHO said that experts would decide through consensus if modifications were needed to the WHO guidelines for hormonal method use among women with HIV or women at risk of contracting HIV.

It is estimated that about 12 million women in sub-Saharan Africa use injectables and eight million use oral contraceptive pills, while 11 million women use non-hormonal methods.

Over the past 15 years, the number of women choosing to use injectables has grown substantially because the method is highly effective and does not require daily action. It can also be used privately.

Recently released findings by the international charity WaterAid, show that there are more people in the world today lacking adequate sanitation services than in 1990.

The report shows that unless urgent action is taken, but nearly all governments in Sub-Saharan African will fail to meet the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) pledge they made to halve the proportion of people without sanitation by 2015.

On the current trajectory, it will take over two centuries for Sub-Saharan Africa to meet its sanitation MDG target.

According to Nshuti Rugerinyange, WaterAid’s Country Representative in Rwanda, every year thousands of children die in Rwanda due to a lack of adequate sanitation and clean water.

He says, “This is the true cost we bear from the failure to ensure basic water and sanitation services. The Government should increase the level of spending on water and sanitation, and donors increase their pledge of aid they spend on water and sanitation, if we want to turn this situation around.”

The report further states that to get the sanitation and water MDGs back on track, countries in sub-Saharan Africa need to spend at least 3.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) on WASH services.

9,305 children died from diarrhea in 2008 in Rwanda, according to Child Health Epidemiology reference group of WHO and UNICEF, lancet 2010. Rwanda has one of the highest under-five mortality rates.

In the two weeks prior to the country’s last Demographic Household Survey (DHS), 13.7% of children under the age of five had had diarrhea.

Twenty five pediatricians from various hospitals in the country have completed training on how to deal with infants in critical health situations.

The training aimed reducing children mortality which often occurs during birth delivery.

Lisine Tuyisenge , secretary of the Rwanda Pediatric Association noted that the training would help improve health services in not only urban but rural pediatric units.

She noted that there have been partnering with similar associations in the region to exchange some of the best practices.

Labai Bikorimana one of the trainees noted that he intends to train his colleagues given that there’s a culture of negligence among most pedestrians.

“If you allow all patients to line up waiting for the doctor some might die on the queue, that’s why we first access patients and give priority to those in critical situations,” Bakorimana said.

Bakorimana noted that the new training equiped them with modern skills of selecting and giving first aid to most sick children and new born baby resuscitation which means giving life to a born baby who is not breathing or other severe complications.

John Wachira the chairman of Kenya Pediatric Association noted that they have been training the local pediatricians on some of the best practices.

“There’s what we call supportive care literally means that a sick infant doesn’t only get injected with medical fluids but also fed,” Wachira advised.

ENDS

Circumcision in heterosexual males could reduce HIV by up to 60%, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The government of Rwanda is to start a non-surgical circumcision drive ‘PrePex’ intended to lower risks of HIV transmission and infections by 50%, according to the study done in the country showing the advantages of using the devise.

Physicians show that the PrePex devise enables circumcision to be performed without surgery or any blood loss, by nurses, who don’t need extensive training to use the apparatus.

The Rwandan Government has completed its third trial of PrePex with nearly 600 volunteers and has concluded recommending that the device is a safe and efficient way of performing circumcisions.

The results were presented at the 16th International Conference on AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) in Africa (ICASA).

Agnes Binagwaho, the Minister of Health recommended on the initiative saying, “We are unwilling to allow our health system resource challenges to dissuade us from our mission: to create a healthier, HIV-free Rwanda. We are committed to finding innovative, safe and effective solutions to make this happen.”

“This study shows that with the non-surgical PrePex device we can safely task-shift circumcision from surgeons and family physicians to nurses, which if nationally scaled up, would make a significant contribution to our public health system.” The Minister added.

Recommending on study made in Rwanda; Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS said, “We commend the government of Rwanda for progressing the science of HIV prevention for the benefit of the region.”

“Innovation is the key to achieving our target of 20 million voluntary adult male circumcisions by 2015 and saving millions of lives. Devices such as PrePex have the potential to facilitate safe and rapid scale up of male circumcision for HIV prevention, an urgent need in Sub Saharan Africa,” he added.

An evaluation from the World Health Organization said the study of the PrePex device provides further clinical evidence that circumcision performed by nurses when using the PrePex device is fast, safe and effective, enabling a bloodless procedure that requires no injected anesthesia, no sutures and no sterile settings.

The device basically works by stopping the flow of blood to the foreskin. It remains in situ for a week, after which time it is removed along with the foreskin that has died due to lack of circulation.

The average time for installation of the device is less than three minutes, with the advantage that it doesn’t involve surgery or cause blood loss, and thus can be performed by nurses.

The device and procedure, which can be performed in a regular doctor’s consulting room has an AE rate of 0.34% (2 out of 590), and the total study adverse event (AE) rate when performed by nurses was 0.83%.

All resolved with minimal intervention, and the AE rate was lower than previously reported AE rates for surgical male circumcision when performed by surgeons (4.8%).

The study was approved by the Rwanda National Ethics Committee and was conducted at Kanombe military Hospital, Kigali Rwanda, between July 2011 and October 2011.

GIZ a German NGO in Rwanda has vowed to strengthen youth friendly health centers as a way of improving reproductive health services especially in rural areas.

The country director Ulrike Maenne highlighted that the youth are benefiting from the program and have also gained the courage to visit the health centers also offering elaborated information about various health issues.

“Awareness of HIV/AIDS for instance is essential and how to avoid the risks of acquiring non-communicable diseases,” she gave the remarks during a gathering of staff and their families.

“we also have an internal sensitization program because we want our employees to be healthy, in similar gatherings which happen yearly, there’re always topics to be discussed mainly on better health practices, hence we would also want to implement this further to the public,” said Maenne.

Liza Girrbach a public health specialist working for GIZ said plans are underway to reach out to the youth and educate them on reproductive health.
“This is very important but we need to train health practitioners since there’s lack of human resource especially in remote areas”.

In this respect, GIZ through the ministry of health has been supporting trainings of midwives, counselors and gynecologists.

“These kind of services also facilitate better maternal health meaning there’re would be a reduction of infant mortality,” she advised.

Currently, the youth friendly health centers are present in five districts; Nyaruguru,Kisagara, Huye, Gicumbi and Musanze.

The government of Rwanda through Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC) and other partners has launched a three months long national campaign to fight against HIV/AIDS among the youth.

This was in relation with the World Aids Day that was marked December 1, 2011.

Over 5000 youth in the city of Kigali including high school leavers who are currently undergoing the civic education (ingando) participated in the event that started with the peace walk from Kaciru round about to Petit Stade, Remera.

Dr. Anita Asiimwe the Deputy Director General of RBC told the press that the campaign will go through all secondary schools and universities, and all villages under the assistance of local and youth leaders.

Asiimwe also demonstrated that since 2008 to the end of the year 2011, new HIV infections among the youth has reduced by 50% of which she noted it was a big achievement.

Jados Habimana one of the youth that attended the launch said “I think the mobilization will creates awareness among some of us who never knew much about AIDS and how it can be controlled like using of condoms.”

Mashirika Creative and Performing Arts Group and other group of local artists delivered HIV/AIDS related messages in form of entertainment.

In a recent press conference, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that HIV infection were at 50% among young generation between 15 and 24 years, which meant between 5000-6000 new infections every day across the world.

According to Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC); the same age group HIV prevalence was estimated at the rate of 1.0% relatively lower than many other countries.

These figures varied from 1.5% among women to 0.4% among men. Meaning that 380 women in this category are infected over every 100 men.

In the same press conference Dr Asiimwe announced that a new behavioral studies among youth in Rwanda, which showed the proportion of young men and women aged between 15-24 years who are sexually active, the number increased from 34% to 39% among young men and from 20 to 26% among young women between the year 2006 and 2009 respectively.

The study show different factors as lack of knowledge about HIV/AIDS, lack of educating and life skills, poor access to health services and commodities, early sexual debut, early marriage, sexual coercion and violence.

Ends

As Gicumbi District marks world Aids day in Gihembe refugee camp, officials has announced that 319 refugees have been infected with HIV.

Only 89 refugees have started getting ant-retroviral drugs, according to statistics from 2004 till date.

Maclean Natugasha an official of American Refugee Committee which helps the refugee to fight the scourge declined to give details of the Aids situation by press time.

In recent statistics released, 6000 young people were getting infected each day and according to the behavioral studies of Rwandan youth, the proportion of sexually active young men and women aged 15-24 years increased from 34 to 39 percent among young men while 20 to 26 percent among young women between 2006 and 2009.

HIV prevalence among youth aged 15-24 years in Rwanda is estimated at 1.0 percent, public officials announced as campaigns for World AIDS Day (WAD) in a recent press briefing.

However some refugees who analyzed situation say, the number of HIV infected refugees may be more than the official statistics due to unprotected life styles in the camp.

“That number must be very small, of course those are people who managed to jump the culture of stigma, based on behaviors I see here and lots of redundancies in the camp with no jobs to keep us occupied many young men and women could possibly end up into sexual interactions,” Said one refugee who declined to publish his name.

In her speech, Theresa Mujawamariya the vice mayor in charge of social affairs called upon more young men to be involved in the fight against the scourge.

Mujawamariye observed that above 18 years of youth did not turn up of the marking of the world Aids day.

“The most targeted group is the productive age group yet I have seen this group neglecting this campaign,” Mujawamariya said.

She also called upon girls to always make firm stand in making their sexual interaction decisions and fight stigma.

She also advised that more ant-aids clubs are needed in the refugee camp if the fight of the scourge has to be successful.

The event to mark the world aids day at the District level which took place in the refugee camp was jointly organized by American Rescue Committee (ARC), Ministry of Disaster Management and Refugee Affairs (MIDIMAR), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and Gicumbi District.

Ends

A Woman 27 from Nyagatare district has given birth to triplets at La Croix du Sud hospital located at Remera in Gasabo district.

The mother of three is in a good condition and after she gave birth to babies weighing 1.925Kg, 2.155Kg and 1.700Kg.

Igihe.com found Hospital staff feeding the new mother saying they have accorded her close care.

Dr. Ntagungira Adrienne in charge of disease control at the hospital said, it was a blessing to have triplets saying the mother shall be administered with birth control services.

The father of the triplets couldnt allow our team to talk to their mother.