Beware the Sex and Meningitis Scam!
In Nigeria, the health care community is tingling about the recent outbreak of Meningitis and how it is being dealt with. I feel sad; and my heart goes out to families and communities that have been affected by the recent outbreak of Meningitis.
While the anxiety is not yet at Ebola 2014 levels, there is evidence from the work that the Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) and other health agencies are doing, that effort is being made to tackle and try to control the spread of the disease as quickly as possible.
Well done!
There have been alerts and updates about cases being detected; treatment plans are being shared as well as the estimates on the number of people who have been diagnosed with the disease and/or died as a result.
Efforts at dealing with the situation include announcements from the relevant health agencies about urgent plans to start with a vaccine programme having acknowledged that the peculiar strain responsible for this outbreak (Meningitis Type C virus) is unlike others we have experienced before.
We know that Meningitis is a dangerous disease and we know enough to confidently suspect, diagnose and even treat this condition - given resource availability.
At a time when over 2,000 cases have been identified; amongst which over 300 deaths have been recorded, we need multi-agency collaboration and leadership to tackle and end this problem.
Inappropriate Comments
Enter into this melee some select comments credited to a governor of one of the states directly affected by this problem.
The full story here, but essentially, it has been reported in the media that the Governor claimed that this particular strain of the Meningitis Type C virus; has been specifically sent by God as ‘punishment’ for widespread fornication (‘nefarious activities’) in the state.
Had the alleged comments been made by any less personality than a sitting Governor of the federal republic, we would sigh, shake our heads, and put it down to ignorance and hope not much harm would be done by this ignorance.
In this case, we are not so lucky!
Zamfara State is said to be the most affected in the latest outbreak, accounting for (as at 3rd April 2017), 216 out of 336 deaths nationally (source: Nigeria Health Watch).
Really, what is required of the Governor in the first instance is to commiserate with and comfort the families that have lost loved ones and those who have been affected by this outbreak; and to liaise with the health authorities, allied agencies, and stakeholders to quickly interrupt spread of disease and strengthen systems for resilience to prevent future outbreaks of preventable diseases.
So, talking about resilience and prevention of disease outbreaks in Nigeria, this is where the real work is for Governors and local authorities managing delivery units of governance, to serve Nigerians in more creative and loyal ways.
Yes, Meningitis Type C virus is not new to the world and yes, it is vaccine-preventable – Thank God!
But, could this be how God really works, allowing us the knowledge that we require to solve problems – even those that we create and inflict on ourselves and humanity?
With huge material and human resources that Nigeria has, weak health and community systems responsible for disease outbreaks, poverty and poor living conditions are a direct consequence of poor governance.
So instead of victim-blaming and attributing disease outbreaks to ‘Acts of God’, Local Government Chairpersons, Governors, Ministers, and all those in positions of governance need to take full responsibility.
The seasons of ignorance and deceit are long gone and it is now time for investment in the health and well-being of Nigerians.
Why not focus on arming all health care workers to be ready to help all seriously ill people while keeping themselves safe and helping to prevent further spread of Meningitis Type C?
Why not focus on working with the FMOH, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and state Ministries of Health and other stakeholders, collaboratively?
Why not work to plan disease prevention generally; and disease emergency response and preparedness better (come next time if this strain is linked as it has been suggested to weather)?
Why not do all these - so that we can altogether prevent disease outbreaks from happening at all, but if not, at least respond faster and more effectively to outbreaks because ‘Nigerian Lives Matter’!
Tell me what you think.
Let us be heard! Let us make positive change happen!
Let us educate our leaders so that they might not continue to mislead us anymore!
Stay Well.
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Editing by AskAwayHealth Team
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