To ease the hunger pangs of the poor and vulnerable in Ilupeju area of Lagos State, Indian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Importers in Nigeria, IPMIN, distributed 1000 cartons of noodles to them at the weekend.
The presentation of the food stuff, which was well coordinated with the presence of security men to enforce social distancing among recipients, had in attendance Chief Varkey Verghese, MD, Jawa International Ltd and president of IPMIN; General Secretary, IPMIN, Mr Presengit Banerji of Kewalran Charai Group; Mr Virendra Jain, IPMIN treasurer and Mr Ashorin S.D, vice-president, of Sam pharma.
Executives of IPMIN, presenting the noodles packs to beneficiaries.
Speaking on their mission in the area, Verghese said it is their own little way of giving back to their immediate community, especially as the economic effects of the global pandemic is biting harder on people.
He said: “As an organisation, we are socially responsible and part of our Corporate Social Responsibility, is what we are doing today, as we decided to donate 1000 cartons of noodles to the poor and needy of Lagos metropolis, at the Ilupeju low income area.
Executives of IPMIN, in a group photograph during the exercise.
“We will continue to do more to help the poor and needy in the society, and we choose Ilupeju because that is where most of our people reside”, he explained.
One of the beneficiaries, an aged woman with the name Hajia Abibat Suleiman expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the organisation, as she prayed for the progress of their business in Nigeria.
Another beneficiary, Mr Chuks Kalu, thanked the leadership of IPMIN for the kind gesture, saying the pack of noodles given him will go a long way, in feeding his household.
Kalu, a petty trader in the area said: “I want to say a big thank you to the leadership of IPMIN for remembering us in this trying time, as we are not finding it easy to feed our children, with low sales and lack of capital to restock”.
Steam therapy, or steam inhalation, is the method of introducing warm moist air into the lungs via the nose and throat for therapeutic benefit. It involves the inhalation of water vapour. This practice is not new. The use of steam bath dates back to centuries, often to the Romans and the Greeks who used steam as a means to heal and draw out impurities from the body. Hippocrates, the father of medicine, also documented the benefits of steam as a means of maintaining daily health.
Constituents Materials required for steam therapy include a large bowl, water, a pot or kettle, a stove or microwave for heating up water and towel. The key to the strong health benefits of steam is its high humidity.
A lady doing Steam Therapy
Preparations Steam therapy may be carried out the traditional way – that is, pour a few cups of steaming water into a large bowl, put a towel over the head to form a “tent”, lean over with the face 15-20cm from the steam, and inhale. Other methods include hot showers with or without essential oils, and personal inhalers.
Pharmacological actions and medicinal uses Mechanism of actions of steam include moisturising dry, irritated nasal and throat passages, making them more comfortable; alleviating soreness and inflammation of the throat; liquefying mucous secretions, resulting in clearer secretions that are easier to expel by coughing or blowing the nose; relaxing throat muscles, thereby reducing the cough reflex; and dilating blood vessels, encouraging better blood flow and overall circulation.
The warm, moist air is thought to work by loosening the mucus in the nasal passages, throat, and lungs. This may relieve symptoms of inflamed, swollen blood vessels in the nasal passages. These actions can allow breathing to return to normal, at least, for a short period of time.
A study showed that children who used steam to help relieve congestion recovered more quickly from respiratory infections than children who did not use steam therapy. One well-designed clinical trial of 62 patients concluded steam inhalation resulted in alleviation of cold symptoms and improved nasal patency (how open the nasal passages are) compared to the placebo-treated group.
Steam therapy is also beneficial in achieving pain relief, healthier skin, stress relief, weight loss and cardiovascular health. While steam inhalation won’t cure an infection, like a cold or the flu, it may help make one feel a lot better, while the body fights off the infection.
Steam inhalation may provide some temporary relief from the symptoms of the common cold, the flu (influenza), sinus infections (infectious sinusitis) and nasal allergies. Moist heat in steam showers has been documented to relieve conditions like bronchial asthma, bronchitis, catarrh, coughs, hoarseness and expectoration (coughing up phlegm).
Steam has shown benefits in relieving respiratory symptoms related to viral infections. This service can be combined with the healing properties of essential oils and various clays as well as mud packs in order to facilitate healing.
Adverse effects A steam room can be dangerous, usually due to the very real risk of dehydration. This is worse if alcohol is consumed just before using the steam room. There is also risk of scalding or severe burns as a result of contact with the hot water.
Economic potentials Steam therapy is 100 per cent natural. It may come at little or no cost as a home remedy. However, construction of portable steam tents may not only provide income for the fabricator, but a more convenient way of accessing the service both in facilities and at home.
Pharm. Ngozika Okoye MSc, MPH, FPCPharm (Nigeria Natural Medicine Development Agency)
Sir Ifeanyi Atueyi is the founder and managing director of Pharmanews Limited, whose flagship publication, the Pharmanews journal, marks 41 years of uninterrupted publication this May. In this recent interview at his office in Maryland, Lagos, the iconic pharmacist and publisher reveals the factors that have helped Pharmananews maintain its leadership position and unbeaten records since inception, as well as what its readers and advertisers should expect in the coming years. Excerpts:
Congratulations on the 41st anniversary of Pharmanews. It seems like yesterday when you marked the 40th anniversary of the journal and your 80th birthday with a special ceremony on 1 October, 2019. Why did you consider those particular milestones worth celebrating?
Pharm.(Sir) Ifeanyi Atueyi
Thank you for bringing up the happy memories of 1 October, last year. If God has given you a healthy life at 80 years, especially in Nigeria, where the average life expectancy is about 55 years, it is something significant. The celebration was an occasion for thanksgiving and celebration with friends, relations and business associates. That was the second time I celebrated my birthday; the first was on 1 October, 2009, when I clocked 70 years.
On the 40th anniversary of Pharmanews, we had cause to beat drums in thanksgiving to God. I wonder if there is any other periodical in this country that has published regularly without interruption for 40 years. You can check from the National Library of Nigeria. It was therefore a glorious celebration of investment of 50 per cent of my years of life on a record-breaking periodical.
Two significant highlights of the last anniversary celebration were the launch of your autobiography, My Life and Pharmanews, and the presentation of awards to 50 companies. What was the significance of these gestures?
I looked forward to that autobiography because there are certain things about my life and business which I needed to make public before I depart from this world. If you read people’s biography with an open mind, there must be certain lessons to learn.
I am glad that I shared in that autobiography some information about my life that had remained in my heart from childhood. Also, I revealed how God called and anointed me as a pharmaceutical journalist. I shared my own personal business model that caused Pharmanews to be a leader today.
Recognising and presenting awards to 50 pharmaceutical companies at the occasion was something that had never happened in this country. Most of them had been partners to Pharmanews for decades.
The beauty of that event was that all the chief executives of the companies were physically present. Few of them who were represented were outside the country at that time. It was such that one chief executive that was hardly seen at public functions was there personally. Their presence showed the tremendous goodwill for Pharmanews.
How did you feel about the turnout at the event and the goodwill messages you received from well-wishers?
The turnout at the event was fantastic. At the planning stage, we booked an event centre to accommodate 600 guests seated. I considered my connections from different sectors – pharmaceutical (different groups), Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship International, church, Okija, neighbours, friends, old boys, university alumni etc. and found it difficult to invite a lot of people. In fact, we printed only 200 invitation cards and used WhatsApp messages for the rest.
Coincidentally, October I was a public holiday and therefore most people were free from work. Since it was not courteous to say no to people who heard of the occasion and wanted to attend, we only prayed to God to take control of the situation in the management of the space, food, drinks and souvenirs. I could not imagine how God would save us from that predicament but He did it in His own way.
On that day, the thanksgiving service started at 7.00 am in Maryland and the main event at 12.00noon in Ikeja. Unexpectedly, heavy rains started at 8.00am and did not subside till about 3.00pm. The rains therefore provided a natural selection and screening for attendance.
Despite the heavy and prolonged downpour, the hall was still overfilled with guests. The organisation was excellent and many guests confessed that it was one beautiful occasion that brought together the cream of the executives in the pharmaceutical industry and the masters of ceremonies managed the event very professionally.
Forty-one years is not an easy feat in the life of any publication, much less a specialised one like Pharmanews, especially in a country like Nigeria. To what would you attribute the success of the journal so far?
As you know very well, morbidity and mortality rate of periodicals in Nigeria is very high. However, many factors have contributed to the success of Pharmanews. Such factors include commitment of the staff, integrity, hard work, desire to provide excellent service, effective management of resources which include, money, time, materials and also effective leadership and teamwork. But the number one factor is God – factor.
On 27th December, 1978, God gave me the vision for Pharmanews and I carefully wrote it down. The original manuscript of the vision is still with me and I made a photograph of it and reproduced it on page 178 of my autobiography. If you go through that vision now you will see that we have maintained it. If God gives you a vision, write it down and follow it. Don’t turn away from it because of people’s ideas. Even those who wish you to succeed may unknowingly take you away from God’s plan for your life and business. I don’t mean that you should reject counsels from peers but remember that the Holy Spirit is the Counsellor while others are mere counsellors.
Pharmanews has continued to be the leading pharmaceutical journal in the country since inception, despite the fact that many other similar publications have been established. How has Pharmanews been able to maintain this front line role? With all modesty, I must I must tell you that Pharmanews assumed leadership of healthcare periodicals in Nigeria from its maiden edition in May 1979. That edition hit the pharmaceutical industry like a thunderbolt. It hit the schools of Pharmacy that were in existence at that time.
At that time, no one had seen a pharmaceutical newspaper in A3 size anywhere in the world. At the FIP Congress held in Brighton, UK, in September 1979, I carried and distributed more than 400 copies which went round nearly 50 per cent of the participants. Every person wanted a copy because nobody had seen a pharmaceutical periodical like that. From that Congress, Pharmanews became the voice of Nigerian pharmacy all over the world.
At the PSN conference held in November, 1979, in Kaduna, there was a massive distribution of Pharmanews. That conference was like an unplanned launching of the journal. Its debut elicited the admiration of many colleagues while, of course, some colleagues demonstrated envy and bitterness.
. After Pharmanews was launched in May, 1979, the World Health Organisation came up with the World Health in 1980. Several look-alikes came up in Nigeria but none has so far survived. There are many reasons why they all failed to survive but that’s not my question here. But one thing I know is that Pharmanews was destined for leadership from its birth and I give glory to God.
Now that 41 years are gone, what should readers and advertisers expect from Pharmanews in the next few years?
By Nigerian standards, a business of 41 years has reached its maturity age. It has garnered experiences from ups and downs of the economy, goodwill and patronage of its clients and, therefore, is adequately fortified for greater services. Pharmanews is still growing and has not yet reached its peak performance. With the advances in information technology there is no limit to expansion of our scope. It is destined to be one of the world’s leading healthcare periodicals. Of course, in Nigeria, all healthcare professionals are familiar with Pharmanews.
As a consummate business manager, who has weathered a number of challenges in the past, what do you think business owners should be doing to survive these difficult times?
If businesses should do one thing to survive these difficult times, I believe that one thing should be effective management of resources. Management of resources is the primary divine responsibility of man. In the beginning, God created man for the purpose of managing His resources. He also created us with talents and abilities to perform the assigned tasks. You succeed when you are a good manager and fail when you are a bad manger.
Before you can effectively manage any business, you must first manage and develop yourself. If you cannot manage your body, time, money, emotions, your economic and spiritual life, how can you successfully manage a business entrusted to your care?
In order to survive these difficult times, business owners must pay attention to their resources. The human resource comes first because there is nothing you can achieve without manpower.
Financial resources, machines and equipment, materials are all important. Identify your actual business needs and source them.
If you bear in mind that all these are God’s resources and you are only a caretaker to make effective use of them to please your Creator and the Owner of the resources, you will survive, by God’s grace.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has just announced 216 new cases of COVID-19 and increase in deaths from 182 to 191 deaths.
With the 216 new cases, Nigeria now has a total of 6,175 cases, 1644 recoveries, and 191 deaths.
Making the disclosure via its Twitter handle, the NCDC said: “As at 11:50pm 18th May 2020, there are 6,175 confirmed cases of #COVID19 reported in Nigeria”. 216 new cases of #COVID19 reported;
It also splitted the 216 new cases into states of occurrence as follows:
The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, has said the recent order of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on gradual ease of lockdown will remain in force for another two weeks.
Mustapha, who is also the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19,disclosed this at the daily briefing of the task force in Abuja, on Monday.
It will be recalled that the President on 27 April announced a “phased and gradual easing” of the lockdown in the Federal Capital Territory, Lagos and Ogun states, while declaring a nationwide curfew with effect from 4 May.
He also ordered a ban on all inter-state movements.
Mustapha, said in spite of the recent progress made, Nigeria was not yet ready for full opening of the economy “and tough decisions have to be taken for the good of the greater majority.”
He said, “Any relaxation will only portend grave danger for our populace.
“Advisedly, the current phase of eased restriction will be maintained for another two weeks during which stricter enforcement and persuasion measures will be pursued.
“The two weeks extension of Phase One of the eased restriction is also to enable other segments of the economy to prepare adequately for compliance with the guidelines, preparatory to reopening in the coming weeks.”
According to him, other measures approved by the president are: “ (i) The measures, exemptions, advisories, and scope of entities allowed to reopen under phase one of the eased locked down, shall be maintained across the federation for another two weeks effective from 12 00 midnight today (18th May, 2020 to 1st June, 2020);
“(ii) intensifying efforts to ‘tell (communicate), trace (identify) and treat (manage)’ cases;
“(iii) elevating the level of community ownership of non-pharmaceutical interventions;
“(iv)Maintain the existing lockdown order in Kano for an additional two weeks;
“(v)Imposition of precision lockdown in states, or in metropolitan/high-burden LGAs, that are reporting a rapidly increasing number of cases, when the need arises. This would be complemented with the provision of palliatives and continued re-evaluation of the impact of the interventions; and
“(vi)Aggressive scale-up of efforts to ensure that communities are informed, engaged and participating in the response with enhanced public awareness in high-risk states.”
The Presidency has said President Muhammadu Buhari will no longer address the nation today, as earlier expected.
Buhari’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, disclosed this known on Monday afternoon via Twitter handle.
Rather, he said the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 led by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, would update the nation during its briefings.
“No presidential broadcast on COVID-19 updates today. None was planned. Rather, the Presidential Task Force will during its usual media briefings bring the nation up to speed on the next steps”, he tweeted.
Faced with soaring pressure from the business community and simmering tension from a disgruntled citizenry, the Federal Government on 27 April announced the easing of the 28-day lockdown that had been imposed on the states of Lagos and Ogun, as well as the Federal Capital Territory, to curb the spread of the raging coronavirus disease.
President Muhammadu Buhari, in a televised broadcast, hinted that the decision to begin the partial relaxation on 4 May was a trade-off between the determination to defeat the pandemic and the desire to steer the country’s fragile economy away from the path of another recession.
To further emphasise that the threat of the virus was still very real and that the easing of the lockdown was not total, the government rolled out a set of guidelines and safety measures to be adopted within the period. These included: Prohibition of interstate travel, except for essential travels and services, as well as for persons on essential duty; mandatory use of non-medical face masks for all persons while in public spaces; prohibition of mass gatherings of more than 20 people outside of the workplace; retention of a ban on all passenger flights; restriction of religious gatherings; social distancing of two meters must be maintained among people in workplaces and other public spaces; imposition of overnight curfew from 8 pm to 6 am.
It came as no surprise that the majority of health workers, who had been at the frontline of stemming the pandemic in the country, were against the government’s decision. Groups, such as the Nigerian Medical Association and the Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals warned of astronomical surge in the number of infections and other consequences. The easing of the lockdown had come at a most inauspicious time – when the number of cases had just begun to escalate. Going by the World Health Organisation’s recommendation, a country can only start to ease restrictions on people’s movement once it is sure that transmission is controlled. Sadly, the reverse is the case here.
Truth be told, in a country like Nigeria, where the health system itself is gravely ill, where the majority of the over 200 million population are living in abject poverty and in overcrowded environments, and where the government had not deemed it necessary to set up any social welfare structure, the safest option would have been to do all that could be done to prevent the virus from entering the country. But since it is here already, the only realistic strategy in winning the war is to maintain a delicate balance between safety of lives and sustenance of livelihoods.
Our recommendation therefore is that, more than ever before, all hands must be on deck to salvage the country from the precarious conundrum in which it has found itself. It must be a collective fight, if we must prevent the catastrophe being predicted by experts and analysts in the aftermath of the lockdown relaxation. Suffice to say that, as things stand, the prognosis does not look very good, judging by the level of compliance with the safety guidelines rolled out by the government. In many areas, the social distancing rule has been largely ignored, with people crowded at banks and bus stops, and many not wearing face masks. The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has indeed warned that these flagrant violations could result in more persons being infected and may result in another lockdown.
We call on Nigerians to make concerted efforts in terms of involvement, awareness, enforcement and investment to defeat COVID-19. Especially now that community spread has begun, leaders at all levels must intensify their involvement in ensuring adherence to the guidelines. No leader – political, organisational, religious or traditional – must stand aloof at this time because this has become a “swim-together-or-sink-together” emergency. When leaders are seen to be active, followers naturally take a cue.
We must emphasise that this involvement must begin with the government and, by that, we mean the president in particular. The current approach of occasional pre-recorded national addresses neither communicates involvement nor inspires hope in the citizenry. Similarly, state governors need to join hands with the FG to ensure coherence in this fight. The present trend in which some governors are blatantly countering the NCDC’s directives and others twisting, politicising and even commercialising reports about the situation in their territories is utterly unacceptable.
The issue of awareness is also of particular importance. Presently, there are still many Nigerians who insist that all the brouhaha about COVID-19 is just a hoax. Consequently the restriction and personal hygiene guidelines are merely seen as punishment. Government, in conjunction with community leaders, needs to address this. Enforcement of guidelines also has to be intensified with the help of the various law enforcement agencies. This requires utmost sincerity as current reports do not indicate sanction but collusion with offenders for monetary gain.
Lastly and most importantly, there is need to invest more funds and donations in winning this fight. Scaling up testing and tracing capacity throughout the federation is a matter of priority. Provision of test kits, personal protective equipment, testing and isolation centres, as well as qualified and motivated manpower are of paramount importance. The battle line with COVID-19 is drawn already and Nigeria must emerge victorious.
Life is too short to be anything but happy. Forgive quickly, take chances, and give everything with no regret. Forget the past – with the exception of what you have learnt; and remember that everything in this world happens for a reason. True happiness comes from a peaceful mind filled with love for all and hatred for none.
Forgiveness is a virtue of noble men. But the nobler of the noblest men are those who forgive quickly. This looks simple in the ordinary sense but to be able to forgive quickly is actually difficult. It is difficult in the sense that it takes a matured mind to easily forgive deep hurts, sheer injustice or obnoxious acts done without any concrete reason. The beautiful news is, those who forgive quickly go to bed without worries or bitterness in their heart. They also live longer than their peers because they never give room for hatred in their minds.
Pharm. Sesan Kareem
We all have the innate ability to forgive quickly. It is a matter of making a firm decision to easily overlook other people’s wrongs and move ahead with our lives. Truly, your life will never remain the same if you forgive quickly. You will discover such inner strength and happiness that only those who forgive quickly enjoy. And your life will be free from bitterness, vexation or grudges.
Forgiveness is a wonderful thing. It ignites love and extinguishes hatred. Robert Muller rightly said, “To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness.”
Forgive yourself
Too often, we hardly forgive ourselves for the mistakes that birthed our scars. Too often, we do not want to accept our faults and learn from them. Accept your faults, learn from your mistakes and keep firing, keep reaching and keep striving for your next level. We all make mistakes and that is why we are humans. We are bound to overreact, misjudge, feel anxious or be impatient to life’s issues. But the best decision you can ever make in your best interest is to forgive yourself and move on. Forgive yourself right NOW.
A remarkable number of people spend years blaming themselves, some people go further to punish themselves unjustly, neglect the very essence of life and become an outcast. But this prescription has not worked and cannot work because the first step towards recuperation in any disease is to accept that you are sick and you need treatment. In other words, you must accept your mistakes, forgive yourself and turn your scars to stars. More often than not, mistakes are forgivable, but only if one has the courage to admit them. Those who discover happiness are those who have learnt to always forgive themselves quickly and also to take to heart a vital lesson from each experience of their lives.
Forgive others
Forgiveness is a valuable virtue of the great. The ability to forgive is one of man’s innate potentials. To overlook others’ wrong, to pardon others’ unfair treatment, is in us as human beings. But it is only the brave that make use of this great virtue. The father of the modern Indian nation, Mahatma Gandhi, once remarked, “The weak can never forgive, forgiveness is the virtue of the strong.”
To experience peace, joy and love in a family, forgiveness is a critical component of family life. We must be quick to forgive our spouses when they make mistakes as we expect them to forgive us quickly. The truth is that we are all trying our best despite our imperfect nature as humans. Forgiveness is also essential in the workplace. We must overlook other people’s wrongs, misjudgement or mistakes at work. We spend most of our time at work and it is important to create and maintain a peaceful environment for optimum performance and productivity.
In our daily life, people will continue to offend us because they are humans. In the same frame, it is also human for us to forgive them and wish them well. You never can tell, you may still need their help or forgiveness in the future. “He that cannot forgive others breaks the bridge over which he must pass himself, for everyman has need to be forgiven,” said English historian, Thomas Fuller. The practice of forgiveness remains one of the most important virtues; to err is human, after all.
Life can be truly rewarding, meaningful and beautiful, if we learn to forgive ourselves, forgive others, live in peace and take absolute responsibility for our happiness. Remember, life is too short to be anything but happy – forgive quickly.
ACTION PLAN: I forgive quickly. I release all form of anger, resentment, bitterness or hatred locked in my heart. I now experience peace, joy and love.
AFFIRMATION: I am free. I am blessed and highly favoured.
Pharmanewsonline, the online portal of Pharmanews-your global health journal, has been blazing the trail in healthcare news reporting over the years, with tremendous improvement in our reach of the various segments of the health sector and the global community.
Pharmanews latest metrics
Currently, the website receives an average of 180,000 hits per day and about 6 million hits monthly. We have over 9000 daily average visitors and over 275,000 monthly visitors with 900,000 monthly page views.
We also TARGET your AUDIENCE more EFFECTIVELY, as our visitors are mainly healthcare professionals.
Here is a good opportunity for our existing and prospective advertisers to take advantage of this wider exposure and reach, to advertise their products on our journal and website, as more readers access our online contents in the comfort of their homes.
Other Benefits of Advertising on Pharmanewsonline are: • Ads can be updated any time with little or no cost. • Ads reach a large number of people all over the world, and are accessed 24 hours, 365 days a year. • It is cheaper than advertising on other media channels (television, newspaper, radio). Thus, advertising on Pharmanewsonline.com is a less expensive way of connecting with your customers and consequently producing greater and more lasting results. • There is the opportunity of hyperlinking to your company’s website. • There is better opportunity to track, test and evaluate the effectiveness of your ad campaigns, compared to other channels of advertisement • Ad campaigns are both easy to implement and easy to withdraw.
Our Online Audience According to a survey conducted by our research team, our online audience comprises healthcare professionals, students, loyal and prospective customers of pharmaceutical brands, and other stakeholders in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industry.
Over the years, Pharmanews has garnered comprehensive database of healthcare professionals in Nigeria. And this enables us to consistently engage them online, updating them with the latest news and information in the industry.
Thus, advertising on Pharmanewsonline.com is a cost-effective and result-oriented way of promoting your products on the web.
Follow us on Facebook @PharmanewsLtd, @Pharmanews NG; on Twitter @PharmanewsLtd; and on Instagram @PharmanewsLtd. For adverts placement and enquiries call: 08026748215, 08038572215
Barring any last minute change, President Buhari will address the nation in a broadcast today Monday May 18, as the first phase of the gradual easing of the lockdown comes to an end.
This was disclosed by Aliyu Sani, national coordinator of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 when he appeared as a guest on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics today Sunday, May 17.
The President will announce to Nigerians whether or not the nation would go ahead with the second phase of the easing of the lockdown.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has just announced 338 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday night, and increase in deaths from 176 to 182.
With the 338 new cases, Nigeria now has a total of 5,959 cases, 1594 recoveries, and 182 fatalities.
Making the disclosure via its verified Twitter handle, the Agency said: “As at 11:50pm the country on Sunday, recorded 338 new cases of COVID-19, 182 fatalities, 1594 recoveries, and a total number of infections as 5,959.”
Division of the new cases to states is as follows:
“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” – Audrey Hepburn.
Recently, I took my boys, Giovanni and Darren, in a 90-minute session on School of Life Series. I told them that I would teach them what they wouldn’t learn in their schools. They listened to me attentively as I explored the concept of “Life is likened to a Computer” – you receive what you put in it, and whatever you sow, you reap. Therefore, if you plant yam, you reap yam.
George O. Emetuche
The younger one, Darren, who is 9, asked an instructive question that informed the topic of this article. He asked, ‘’ Daddy, why is it that sometimes when you plant, the seed won’t grow’’? The question seemed simple but required a broad explanation. I asked if he had experienced that before and he told me how he once planted a seed in our compound but, astonishingly, the seed didn’t grow as he expected. He couldn’t reconcile the outcome with what I said that when you plant, you reap.
As a professional trainer, I knew a big job was staring at me; the job of explaining to my sons why the seed didn’t grow! Consequently, I began my explanation. I told them that when you plant, you must ensure the following:
The seed planted must be a good one.
The seed must be planted in a fertile soil.
The soil must be watered and cared for.
The person sowing the seed must be knowledgeable enough in the world of farming.
The season of planting must be right.
Then pray.
My boys nodded, as I unraveled the process that leads to successful planting and reaping. This took place on the third day of the first two-week lockdown.
Some people may have planted various seeds at different times without receiving bountiful harvests. This is true because sometimes we experience what we least expected. Life is not automatic!
Beyond planting
The main issue is not to plant a seed. Everyone can dig the ground and plant seeds. But the crux of the matter is to care for the seed. The main issue is to go the process that ensures bountiful harvest.
I believe that anyone that plants peeps into the future. Therefore, the sower must go the extra mile to water and care for the plant to ensure success when the time of reaping comes. In our individual endeavours, the question we should ask always is: Are we truly following the process that guarantees successful outcomes? This question applies in all situations. It applies in our families, in businesses, in professional lives, in careers, in vocations and so on.
Are you really planting in a fertile soil? Are you watering and caring for what you planted? Success is a practical endeavour. Nobody succeeds by mere wishing. Success is not served on a platter. You must work your success. You must take one step at a time to climb the Success Ladder. You must do this diligently.
This is the right time to review your strategy. You need to find out creative ways to get better even if you think you are doing well already. You need to review and discover better ways of doing things in order to reach your planned destination.
Your seed can grow exponentially if you follow the right process. Yes! Your seeds can grow beyond your imagination if you just adhere to the right principles. Success is about following the right principles.
As the world is passing through a phase because of COVID-19, this is the right time for reflection to rediscover the true you. The world may be on lockdown, but let your mind not be on lockdown.
May our seeds grow exponentially and astronomically, amen.
Stay Positive.
Stay Safe.
Stay Healthy.
Read A Book.
George O. Emetuche, CES,
Brian Tracy endorsed bestselling author, accredited training consultant, life coach, sales and marketing expert.
P.S: Due to the lockdown, the date for our Masterclass is shifted indefinitely. A new date will be announced accordingly.
A COVID-19 patient gave birth to a baby boy after a successful caesarean section delivery at the Gbagada Isolation Centre, Lagos, on Saturday 16 May.
Announcing the accomplishment recorded by the State Government through her health workers, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said the feat is another validation of the government’s position that it would stamp out the Coronavirus virus from the state.
“I bring you great news from our isolation facilities. Today, a pregnant COVID-19 positive patient was delivered of a baby boy through caesarian section at the Gbagada Isolation Centre. Both Mother and baby are doing well.
“Today’s achievement is a pointer that our strategies in Lagos state are working and yielding the desired results. It is also a sign of victory and motivation for us as we push ahead in the battle against the Coronavirus pandemic”.
Sanwo-Olu also announced the discharge of 67 more patients from four isolation centres after testing negative two consecutive times for the Coronavirus virus.
“Also, 67 fully recovered COVID-19 Lagos patients; 22 females and 45 males including 3 foreign nationals – 2 Indians and a Chinese were discharged to join the society.” Sanwo-Olu said.
“The patients; 24 from the Mainland Infectious Disease Hospital, Yaba, 22 from Onikan, 11 from Agidingbi, 2 from Lekki and 8 from Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) Isolation Centres were discharged having tested negative to COVID-19 in two consecutive readings”, the governor said.
Giving additional update, the governor said with the latest development, the number of patients successfully managed and discharged from Isolation facilities in Lagos stands at 608.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, however, enjoined Lagosians to support the government in its drive to rid the state of COVID-19 by complying with all its directives on the various safety protocols.
“As our front line health workers record successes in the battle against #COVID19, we urge citizens to adhere strictly to our public advisories and directives as this is the only way we can break the chain of transmission of the infection and hoist the flag of victory at the end of it all.
“And as we look forward to more great news in the coming days, I urge you all to take responsibility and play your part for a #COVID19FreeLagos #ForAGreaterLagos.” the governor said.
The Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), at the weekend issued an advisory on cloth mask, insisting that cloth facemask itself cannot protect individuals completely, saying it must be worn in combination with other containment measures.
These measures are: “avoiding large gatherings, physical distancing by maintaining a distance of 2 meters between yourself and others, regular handwashing with soap under running water, and frequent cleaning of surfaces with soap and water or disinfectants”.
In the guidelines, the agency noted that COVID-19 was primarily spread through respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks.
Also in response to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak in Nigeria, it advised the use of face masks as an additional layer of physical distancing to help block the spread of respiratory droplets from person to person.
Noting that the government of Nigeria has mandated the use of face masks in public places, NCDC said due to the global shortage of medical face masks, several countries are turning alternatives to medical face masks for the general public.
It said a cloth face mask, made out of everyday fabric can act as a barrier to respiratory droplets but cannot completely protect you from COVID-19.
It explained further that cloth face masks are a convenient substitute to medical face masks for the current global situation but they should not be worn by individuals who are at high risk for complications due to COVID-19.
The NCDC made a list of groups that should compulsorily wear medical face masks, as follows: healthcare workers and those caring for the ill, those experiencing respiratory symptoms like coughing and sneezing, the elderly, and those with chronic medical conditions.
The advisory also recommended that people should wash their hands frequently with soap under running water to avoid contamination, adhere to social distancing measures and stay at home as much as possible, wear a mask before leaving your home for essential services, wear masks made with at least 3 layers of fabric, use a cloth face mask on children under the age of 2 years.
Other guidelines are: “Don’t try on new masks from vendors or wear immediately after purchasing; Wash before first use, don’t reuse a cloth face mask before it has been washed and dried, don’t leave a used face mask on uncleaned surfaces or in the reach of small children while not in use, don’t pull down your mask to cough or sneeze. Use a tissue or your bent elbow over the mask until you can safely remove the mask for washing.
“it is very important that cloth face masks are handled and cared for properly to avoid the further spread of infectious agents. Please adhere to the following guidelines for the use of cloth face masks: make sure the mask has been washed and is unused before first wear. Wash your hands with soap under running water before touching the mask. If water is not available, use a hand sanitiser.
“Cover your nose and mouth completely with the mask making sure it fits snuggly with no open gaps. Avoid touching or adjusting the mask while it is on 5. Wash or sanitize your hands before removing the mask by the straps. Wash the mask immediately with soap or detergent and allow it to dry completely in the sun and before re-use, iron the mask”, it stated.
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, has hinted on its plan to accelerate the laboratory evaluation procedure for the safety and efficacy of the Madagascar herbal formulation, Covid Organics.
The agency’s statement came on the heels of the presentation of the Madagascar syrup to President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday, by his counterpart, President Umaro Sissoco Embalo of Guinea Bissau.
NAFDAC Logo
Explaining the duration for the laboratory examination of the drug to be completed, the agency said the process would be prioritised without compromising the efficiency of the process, as against the normal procedure of three months.
NAFDAC’s Director of Public Relations, Dr Abubakar Jimoh, in a report published by Sunday Punch, said: “When the drug arrives, it will go to the Minister of Health who will in turn hand it over to NAFDAC through the PTF. It is after that we would start our laboratory examination. It will be subjected to the normal procedure.
“We would expedite action on this because everyone is anxiously waiting for the result. We would speed it up but it will still have to go through the normal laboratory analysis and medical evaluation.
“The normal mandatory procedure is three months, but under this emergency, we would give it a top priority to come out with urgent results. In the process of the evaluation, if NAFDAC needs to get in touch with the manufacturers we will. It all depends on the analysis in the lab”, he stressed.
Receiving the Madagascan made herbal mixture in Abuja Saturday, Buhari had insisted that the formulation will be subjected to scientific validation before it will be administered on citizens.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, had earlier kicked against the development, saying it is counter-productive, as it is seen as an act to discourage local research and development towards getting solution to the pandemic.
In a health policy advisory jointly signed by NMA president, Dr Francis Faduyile, and General Secretary, Dr Olumuyiwa Odusote, the association said such a move was bound to discourage local research efforts.
“The acceptance of the herbal remedy from Madagascar ‘Covid Organics’ by the federal government is an act of pulling all stops in search of remedial interventions in protecting the lives of our citizens.
“We appreciate the concerns of our colleagues in the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) and bemoan the situation where Nigeria appears to be lagging and not leading the black race’s response against the pandemic”, the association lamented.
In the same vein, Nigerian pharmaceutical scientists under the aegis of the Nigerian Association of Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Scientists in the Americas, NAPPSA, have drawn the attention of government to the danger in using non-evidence-based herbal preparations in treating COVID-19, saying it portends grave consequences for the nation.
It recommend that drugs to treat or prevent COVID-19 should be evaluated in randomised clinical trials (RCT).
“Since clinical trials for therapeutics are regulated by NAFDAC, the agency should issue guidance on the development of drugs with direct antiviral activity, immunomodulatory activity or other mechanisms of action. The federal government should also be fully committed to supporting R&D efforts for COVID-19.
Nigerian pharmaceutical scientists under the aegis of the Nigerian Association of Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Scientists in the Americas, NAPPSA, have drawn the attention of government to the danger in using non-evidence-based herbal preparations in treating COVID-19, saying it portends grave consequences for the nation.
The association said it has been monitoring the development in the country, with several unsubstantiated claims for cure of COVID-19, on social media, inform of science misconceptions and disinformation, fuelled by unethical claims by some scientists without presenting their scientific evidence.
Dr Anthony Ikeme, NAPPSA president
In a press statement jointly signed by the President, Dr Anthony Ikeme, and Secretary, Dr Aloysius Ibe, NAPPSA presented it position on the situation saying: “We strongly recommend that drugs to treat or prevent COVID-19 be evaluated in randomised clinical trials (RCT).
“Since clinical trials for therapeutics are regulated by NAFDAC, the agency should issue guidance on the development of drugs with direct antiviral activity, immunomodulatory activity or other mechanisms of action. The federal government should also be fully committed to supporting R&D efforts for COVID-19.
“Scientific discoveries are announced first through scientific publications and not to the media. Any scientist rushing to the press to make such claims without passing through the scientific community should no t be taken seriously”, it said.
Benefits of evidence-based practice Listing the benefits of evidence-based practice, to include provision for replicability, standardization, future improvements, peer review and validation by the rest of the global scientific community, it said Nigeria, in particular and Africa, in general, will be shortchanging herself if scientific norms are compromised in the quest for quick victories.
Consequences of using scientifically unproven remedies The association therefore stated that failure to follow due process portends unfavourable consequences to Nigeria or any African nation in many ways, namely:
“Safety: It encourages the proliferation of wild untested therapeutic claims which is a breeding ground for unsafe use of therapeutic agents with huge implications for public health.
“Credibility Questions: Claims of scientific breakthrough without equivalent scientific evidence leads to loss of credibility in the eyes of the world. Our authorities and national image risk such credibility questions if we accept these therapies without due scientific rigor.
“Limits Opportunity: If Nigeria or any other country in Africa discover the cure for COVID-19, we should not only use it to save our people but it should be opened up as a therapeutic option for the rest of the world and Africa should be recognised by the rest of the world for that accomplishment and should derive the economic benefits that comes with it. None of this will happen without demonstrable evidence of therapeutic value through a robust scientific process”, it warned.
Madagascar COVID-Organics
Expressing it stand on the reception of the Madagascar herbal mixture, COVID-Organics, by the Nigerian government, the association noted its fears about the uncertainty surrounding the directive to submit the herbal formulation for safety and efficacy tests by NIPRD, as there are no clear cut statements on the validation process. The statement reads in part:
“The pronouncements by both the Nigerian Minister of Health and Secretary to Federal Government that the herbal drug from Madagascar would be subjected to analysis by the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) to determine its efficacy and safety, before it can be adopted for the treatment of COVID-19 are not quite assuring.
“Firstly, the order to import refers to “Nigeria’s Quota” of the syrup in a manner suggestive that this is the cure we have been waiting for. Secondly, there is no clarity on what the “validation process” for the product entails. Any truncated or abbreviated “validation process” short of well-conducted clinical trials will not provide adequate scientific evidence needed to ensure that the herb is safe and therapeutically effective for COVID-19.
“Finally, since artemisia (the major component of the Madagascar syrup) is widely grown in Nigeria, the federal government should engage the endowed local research community in conducting clinical trials within the country in lieu of open-handedly embracing the importation of an unsubstantiated herbal product.
“We are mindful that the COVID-19 pandemic demands scientists with expertise and know-how to expedite the search and discovery of new therapeutic remedies for the coronavirus disease and to save lives. But this effort should not be at the expense of quality and scientific rigor”, it maintained.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has just announced 176 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday night, and increase in deaths from 171 to 176.
With the 176 new cases, Nigeria now has a total of 5,621 cases, 1472 recoveries, and 176 fatalities.
Making the disclosure via its verified Twitter handle, the Agency said: “As at 11:50pm the country on Saturday, recorded 176 new cases of COVID-19, 171 fatalities, 1521 recoveries, and a total number of infections as 5,445.”
Division of the new cases to states is as follows:
President Muhammadu Buhari, Saturday, has just received the much noised Madagascar herbal drug, at the State House, Abuja, from President Umaro Sissoco Embalo of Guinea Bissau.
Receiving the Madagascan made herbal mixture for the treatment of COVID-19 patients in the country, Buhari insisted that the formulation will be subjected to scientific validation before it will be administered on citizens.
Madagascar’s COVID Organics
The Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, had earlier kicked against the development, saying it is counter-productive, as it is seen as an act to discourage local research and development towards getting solution to the pandemic.
In a health policy advisory jointly signed by NMA president, Dr Francis Faduyile, and General Secretary, Dr Olumuyiwa Odusote, the association said such a move was bound to discourage local research efforts.
“The acceptance of the herbal remedy from Madagascar ‘Covid Organics’ by the federal government is an act of pulling all stops in search of remedial interventions in protecting the lives of our citizens. “We appreciate the concerns of our colleagues in the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) and bemoan the situation where Nigeria appears to be lagging and not leading the black race’s response against the pandemic”, the association lamented.
On the contrary, the National Agency for Food and Drug, Administration and Control, NAFDAC, has hailed the Madagascar’s government for believing in their local herbs and using them, while criticising Nigerians for not utilising theirs.
The NAFDAC DG, Prof. Moji Adeyeye, in a report of the News Agency of Nigeria, said : “We are proud of them (Madagascar). They appreciate what they have. We do not.
“All the herbs they have and are using, we have them. But we do not use them the way they are doing.
“They appreciate their brains and use them. We must do same here if we want to develop as a nation,” she stressed.
Adeyeye, regretted that Nigeria had consistently depended on what others were bringing to it, and emphasised the need to look inward for solutions to our concerns.
President Buhari however reiterated that his position on all such herbal or traditional medicinal postulates remained the same.
According to him, “We have our institutions, systems and processes in the country. Any such formulations should be sent to them for verification. I will not put it to use without the endorsement of our institutions. ”
The 2019 novel Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a new strain of coronavirus that had not been previously identified in humans. It was first detected in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. While most initial transmission appeared to be zoonotic, person-to-person transmission is the most important common mode of transmission currently.
Today, infection has topped 2.6m, with deaths in excess of 181,000 worldwide. In Nigeria, we have over 1000 infections and over 30 deaths. It has spread to over 26 states with epicentres in Lagos, Abuja (and maybe Kano).
Pharm. Tunde Oyeniran
The outlook is uncertain in Nigeria – this will be eventually determined by the scope and depth of community infection. As of now, it appears we are at the take-off stage of the very dangerous community spread of infection.
The coronavirus outbreak is first and foremost a human tragedy, affecting millions of people. It is also having a growing impact on individual businesses, as well as national, regional and the global economy. As at the time of this writing, Lagos, Ogun and Abuja are in a lockdown, as ordered by the federal government.
Overall, the 36 states are in various forms of lockdown and restriction of movement, with its profound negative effects on businesses and personal lives.
This is a totally new experience for us all. Below are suggestions and ideas on how businesses can survive this situation:
Observe measures to protect your staff and customers as well as to contain the spread of the virus
A. If the business is still fully or partially open, then be obsessive about hygiene. The best way for business owners and employers to ensure that employees and customers are protected from COVID-19 infection is to:
i. Encourage employees to wash their hands frequently with soap and water. 65% alcohol-based hand sanitizer is a viable alternative.
ii.Encourage employees to cough or sneeze into a tissue, or into their elbow (if no tissue is available).
iii. Clean and disinfect surfaces and premises at a minimum of once daily.
iv. Mandate unwell employees to stay at home and observe their symptoms.
v. Avoid crowding, and crowded places
B. Stop the spread of the virus by following these health and safety tips from the NCDC:
i. Maintain social distancing. No handshakes: Use a non-contact method for greetings.
ii. Try not to touch your mouth, eyes and nose. Remind employees to do the same.
iii. Constantly and regularly disinfect surfaces, including doorknobs, handrails, the POS system, tables and desks.
iv. Keep your employees and your customers safe by being as proactive as possible about cleanliness.
v. Taking care of staff is paramount Give employees flexibility as a means of caring. Allow and enable them to work from home, as much as is possible.
Reduce meetings and travels. Meetings are the platform for managers to work, take decisions, make deliberations, ad communicate. But it encourages crowding, heavy personal contacts and use of shard space and facilities/equipment. This is a veritable means of COVID-19 transmission. So, physical meetings should be heavily reduced, if not totally axed.
Teleconferencing is the current trend. Reps should be restricted to their bases, to help reduce transmission and infection.
Indicate that personal safety of employees is important and should be taken care of in all circumstances. Sales representatives and other field staff should be encouraged to obey lockdowns and other measures and directives by the authorities, without taking unnecessary risks.
They should also be provided with proper ID and authorisation documents as may be necessary for movement as may be prescribed by authorities Proactively provide clarity and security for employees. Company-wide memo and communications should be should be crafted top communicate (a) to (d) above and more, including working week, working hours, expense and cost management, expected reporting mode/timing, etc.
Communicate what will (or might happen to) wages and salary. A special issue to be communicated is about compensation. It is a bit difficult to make any guarantee in this respect, and there is no general pattern. Some companies can afford to keep paying (full or in part) for a fairly long time, while others don’t have that scope.
Whatever is the situation, it is much better to be clear about what will (or what may happen) to salary, wages and capped field force expense (float) within the scope of the crisis and immediately after. Same goes for security of positions and jobs. These can be addressed even as situations evolve.
Taking care of your business Keep access open. We are in the healthcare industry and our products and services are critical to some patients, customers and institutions. So, as much as possible, we should enable and design processes to make them available despite the constraints. Sales have to continue in order to generate income for running expenses (there will always be running expenses for any on-going concern and for operations immediately after COVID-19).
Focus on collection, building relationship and demand- generation. Collection do not often need physical presence as payments can be done online. But reps need to ask and, in some instances, may need to do “banking” for customers. Waiting till the end of the pandemic to demand for your money is risky and may bring financial grief.
The least is to put your company on the front burner by getting a payment plan effective in the first few weeks, post-crisis. The other planks include focusing on demand generation within the available resources, opportunities and reachable healthcare professionals, as well as creating and building relationship with customers, distributors, KOLs – after all they have more time in their hands. In this regard, phone calls, WhatsApp, teleconferencing, etc., are important. Communicate transparently with your customers.
Everyone is facing this crisis together; so be transparent about what your business is going through. Customers can empathise with brands facing a crisis, as long as you communicate with them properly.
As Harvard Business Review reports, “When customers are separated from the work that’s being done behind the scenes to serve them, they appreciate the service less and then they value the service less.” Describe the steps you’re taking to mitigate risk and give them insight into the steps you’re taking to help the community.
Shift your sales strategy online. One major characteristic of the crisis is severe restriction of movement. It then becomes obvious to move ordering, communication, tracking, awareness creation, report/reporting, meeting, briefing, etc. into the cyberspace.
Assess your product portfolio. While the depth and duration of the impact of this crisis on the economy and individual lives is difficult to forecast, it is smart to start recovery planning ahead of time.
This could mean recalibrating your product line or rebalancing to increase focus on new opportunities and changing your channel strategy to be digitally-led. Companies with all products from India/China, products that are bulky, products with low margins are suffering, low stock-holding will more negatively affected.
Figure out where the opportunity lies. Like in every crisis, opportunities abound for those with well-tuned antennae and perspicacity. The starting point is to ask, what are the lessons to be learnt from this crisis that we were most unprepared for?
How is the environment reacting or likely to react? I predict that government and individuals will pay more attention to our very weak health system. How will you, your region and your company benefit from this? I expect immunity-building and supplements/nutraceuticals segments to grow as COVID-19 has exposed the limitations of orthodox medicine and therapy.
Clean up parts of your business that you’ve been neglecting or haven’t had time for. Control what you can control. Rather than focusing on how bad it is, focus on how you can use this time to connect with your future customers. This is also a good time to clean up all the little messes every small business has. Everyone has things they wish they could re-do. Now is the time to make those changes.
Tunde Oyeniran, a Sales/Marketing Strategist, Selling/Sales Management Trainer and Personal Coach (Sales Management) is the Lead Consultant, Ekini White Tulip Consulting Limited, Lagos. Feedback Channels: 080-2960-6103 (SMS/WhatsApp) /ekiniwhitetuliptraining@gmail.com or check https://fb.me/EkiniWhiteTulipConsulting
As the world continues to grapple with the global health pandemic of COVID-19, it is fitting to recognise some of the healthcare workers at the frontline (first responders) in the emergency response against what is probably the greatest public health crisis of our generation.
One of such medical heroes working at the epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic in the US (New York) is Dr Olakunle Akinboboye, a professor of cardiology at Cornell University and medical director of Laurelton Heart Specialist Hospital (Queens Heart Institute), and Strong Health Medical Centre, Rosedale, New York, USA.
Dr Olakunle Akinboboye
Akinboboye is one of the top experts in nuclear cardiology in the state of New York. With almost four decades’ experience in cardiac imaging, clinical hypertension, coronary artery disease, diabetes and sleep medicine, he is one of best hands available to COVID-19 patients with underlying health conditions like cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, which makes them have the highest risk of death.
Before the coronavirus outbreak, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) constituted the most predominant public health concern in the western world. CVDs are a group of disorders of the heart and blood vessels and include coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, rheumatic heart disease and other heart conditions. They were responsible for the deaths of an estimated 17.9 million people each year, making them the leading cause of death globally.
In 2017, Akinboboye made history when he became the first black medical doctor to chair the Cardiovascular Disease Board of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM). As the head of the 12-member board he is responsible for the periodic knowledge assessment and certifying all practising cardiologists in the US.
Prior to this appointment, Akinboboye served as chair of the clinical trials committee of the organisation. He also served on the International Board of governors of the American College of Cardiology, as the liaison officer for Africa.
Background and education Born in 1961, Akinboboye is a native of Ondo State, Nigeria. He was influenced early in life to be a medical doctor by doctors in his family – particularly his uncle, who was a gynaecologist; and his elder brother who is a physician.
Akinboboye studied Medicine at the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Nigeria, where he received his medical degree (MBBS) in 1984. He later moved to the US where he finished his internal medicine residency and part of his cardiology fellowship at the Nassau County Medical Centre, State University of New York, at Stony Brook.
He went on to Columbia University and completed another fellowship with a dedicated two-year training in nuclear cardiology and advanced echocardiolography. He became an associate professor of clinical medicine at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York.
Akinboboye has the unique distinction of earning, in addition to his degrees in Medicine, an MBA from Columbia University and also a Master’s degree in Public Health from the same school. He has, to his credit, over 100 scientific publications in the fields of hypertension, diabetes and heart imaging.
Professional medical association Akinboboye has served on the International Board of Governors of the American College of Cardiology from 1997 to 2000. He became the 14th national president of the Association of Black Cardiologists (ABC) which was established in 1974 to focus on the adverse impact of cardiovascular disease on African Americans. He is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians.
His other memberships include: American Heart Association, International Society of Hypertension in Blacks, American Society of Nuclear Cardiology, Society of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance, Association of Black Cardiologists, Certification Board of Nuclear Cardiology.
Awards and recognitions Akinboboye is a recipient of many awards and recognitions. In 2004 and 2005, he served as an invited expert on interpretation of challenging cases in nuclear cardiology at the annual scientific meeting of the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology.
From 2006 to 2014, he was consistently selected by Castle Connolly, a leading yearly publication of distinguished US doctors in New York, Chicago and Florida regions, in its prestigious Top Doctors Award: New York Metro Area. He was also selected by the Network Journal as one of the best black doctors in the New York State and cities around New York in February 2005.
Akinboboye was also cited as one of the best cardiology specialists by another New York magazine in 2006, 2007, and 2008. He received an award from the Association of Black Cardiologists for his dedicated service as a board member from 1999 to 2005. He also received an award for “exemplary professional services and outstanding contributions to cardiovascular medicine” while serving as president of the Ibadan College of Medicine Alumni Association, North America, from 2004 to 2005.
Akinboboye is passionate about training and mentoring young physicians and cardiologists. He received a humanitarian award from the College of Medicine at University of Ibadan in Nigeria in 2005 for his ongoing efforts to spread expertise in the techniques of cardiopulmonary resuscitation in Nigeria.
He has trained several generations of fellows in cardiology at New York Presbyterian Medical Centre, State University of New York at Stony Brook, and New York Hospital Queens.
Akinboboye has received grants from the US government through the National Institute of Health, and also from the American Heart Association, in recognition of his outstanding expertise and skills as a medical researcher and physician.
Nurses have been urged to take responsibility in protecting their lives in the wake of the continuous community transmission of the novel Coronavirus, as they have the right to turndown life threatening conditions, with inadequate provision of personnel protective equipment.
They were told to render their services heartily, but to be weary in going all out in giving care to patients if they lack the necessary protective equipment to protect themselves from the infection.
Lagos State FOLGONM Chairman, Com. Mary Lateef –Yusuf (3rd from left) flanked by some executives of the state chapter at the conference
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Pharmanewsonline, the Chairman, National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, NANNM, COVID-19 Action Committee, Lagos State, Mary Lateef-Yusuf, said it is imperative for her colleagues to be very meticulous while rendering care to avoid being infected, as there is no emergency in pandemic.
She stated : “I want to remind my colleagues in all tiers of health services to comply with infection prevention and control protocols. They have the right to decline their services if their lives are in jeopardy through inadequate provision of personal protective equipment .
“There’s no emergency in pandemic and thus they should be careful always while rendering care to avoid being infected. Their services are only needed when they are alive and healthy”, she stressed.
Although she acknowledged efforts from the government in making PPEs available to nurses, but she noted that there is need for improvement. “The State Government is trying but they should do more in provision of PPEs and welfare of our members”.
She also called on members of the public to obey national health directives such as: appropriate hand washing practices, use of masks, use of alcohol based sanitizers, keeping social distancing, personal and environmental hygiene, and calling the given number 08000CORONA when Ill.
On the International Nurses Week, celebrated between 6-12 May, she said the Lagos State NANNM and FOLGONM joined the world to celebrate this year’s event, themed: “Nurses Nursing the World to Health”.
Describing the theme as prophetic, for x-raying nurses role in the pandemic, the NANNM COVID-19 Chairman disclosed that Lagos NANNM was expected to host an international event in Nigeria, but the outbreak of the infection changed the narrative.
Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun state, has again extended the COVID-19 lockdown in the state by another one week.
Speaking at a press briefing held in his office at Oke Mosan, Abeokuta, on Friday May 15, the governor said the high level of community transmission of the viral disease and the non-compliance with the safety regulations, necessitated the extension of the lockdown.
Dapo Abiodun, Governor of Ogun State
”In in view of the evidence of community transmission and poor compliance with the lockdown measures, we are constrained to extend the lockdown for another week till Sunday 24th of May. The current pattern of lockdown, with relaxation windows from 7.00am to 5.00pm on Monday, Wednesday and Friday continues.
‘We will continue to monitor the level of compliance with the lockdown measures and incidence of community transmission and hopefully, there will be positive developments that will enable us further ease the lockdown at the end of this new lockdown period. We must also bear in mind that the daily curfew from 8pm to 6am and the ban on non-essential inter- State travel as directed by Mr. President still stands.
‘Interestingly, the feedback from you, the people of Ogun State, from the Public Opinion Poll hosted on the Twitter, also support the extension of the lockdown. Out of about 6,000 respondents of the online poll, 53 percent support the continuation of the lockdown whilst 43 per cent want a review with 4 per cent undecided.
Ideally, compliance should be seen as a moral responsibility and civic duty. Let me state that we will not tolerate any form of sabotage in our approach and efforts at flattening the curve of COVID-19 in our dear Ogun State. We will not tolerate any act of smuggling of people, either indigenes or non-indigenes in to our dear Ogun State. Anybody found contravening this restriction will be immediately prosecuted.” he said
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has announced 288 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday night, the total number of infections in the country is 5445.
Making the disclosure via its verified Twitter handle, the Agency said the country on Friday, recorded 288 new cases of COVID-19, 171 fatalities, 1320 recoveries, and a total number of infections as 5,445.
According to NCDC, it was reported that on the 14th of May, four cases reported from Plateau & one case from Akwa Ibom, were repeat cases, therefore Plateau has a total of 21 cases and Akwa Ibom has a total of 16 cases.
Division of the new cases to states is as follows:
What we are witnessing now is strange, totally unexpected and unprepared for. It is worse than war between nations or communities. It is a calamity, a disaster of monstrous proportion. Most people are still in denial and they demonstrated against the government for daring to restrict their movement, tampering with their freedom, a fundamental right enshrined in the constitution of Nigeria.
The rapidity of the COVID-19 pandemic and the unpreparedness of the world made it difficult, if not impossible, for people to quickly accept the reality of the situation and embrace the measures being devised to contain it. Indeed, the story of the novel coronavirus pandemic belongs to a group of celestial events which had been recorded in history. The biblical stories of the Egyptian plagues, crossing of the Red Sea and others are more like a myth to some people, rather than a reality which the Christians accept and preach.
Pharm. (Dr) Obalolu Ojo
There are people who believe that COVID-19 is a punishment from God, in response to the total disregard for His laws by humans. But whatever your beliefs are, the truth is that COVID-19 is here with us and it will exert its maximum effect, if we are not careful.
Emergence
The pandemic started late December 2019, in Wuhan, China, and rapidly grounded all economic activities with its reverberations being felt all over the world. China, being a major supplier of virtually everything, sent the whole world into a panic mode.
Initially, the world was only concerned with the economic impact and the alteration of the established order – but not for too long, as the disease spread its wing to all parts of the globe and, pronto, everybody in every corner of the world is in trouble. The virus is now known to have infected over a million people and killed more than 60,000 of them. It has spread to at least 180 countries and regions around the world in less than three months!
Europe is the worst hit. In Italy, people are dying daily in their hundreds. In the United Kingdom, the discussions and hysteria that accompanied BREXIT was quickly set aside to focus on the COVID-19 pandemic. Spain is in trouble, big trouble, just as it is in other European nations.
The story is not different in other continents. Asian nations like India, South Korea, etc, are not spared of the evil touch of the pandemic. In the Middle East, hitherto sworn enemies, such as Saudi Arabia, Iran and Israel are now faced with the same race of how to contain the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak.
In America, the usually loquacious and boisterous Donald Trump had been boasting about the invincibility of the United States of America until the reality of his people’s vulnerability dawned on him and others in government. Today, America has overtaken China as the epicentre of the disease. It is a pathetic story throughout the length and breadth of USA. The nation’s healthcare system is overwhelmed. People are dying in huge numbers daily and the situation is getting out of control.
In an unusual bipartisan action since the Trump era began, the two legislative chambers of the Congress agreed to an unprecedented $2 trillion package to combat the pandemic. This is a massive stimulus package, about 100 times the national budget of Nigeria. Yet, for the United States of America, the battle of COVID-19 is not abating yet.
In Africa, over 6,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed with South Africa leading at over 1,500 cases and closely followed by Algeria with over 1000 cases. In Nigeria, over 200 cases have been confirmed with five fatalities.
Effects
However, while we are still trembling under the fear of the dreaded COVID-19, it is important for us to examine its impact on the world order, nation states and individual lives. The pandemic has changed what we used to know, observe, appreciate, adore and even worship. The usual camaraderie that defines our society is no longer an acceptable norm. Now, everybody is a suspect – your spouse, children, parents, relations, friends, colleagues at work or in the profession or religious group, etc.
It is no longer okay to shake hands, hug or embrace, kiss or in any way display physical affection for your loved ones. We are to maintain social distance and there is a government “stay at home” order. In fact, these days, it is not uncommon to receive a message like, “If you love me, don’t visit.” The old people, 60 years and above, are particularly vulnerable and we are
advised to stay far away from them.
COVID-19 does not respect any person, nation, ethnicity or race. It has the greatest disregard for power, wealth and influence. The United States of America, the most powerful nation in the world, has succumbed to the reality of COVID-19 threat. The weapons of war cannot save the great nation from the threat of the pandemic, which has also exposed the weakness of its healthcare delivery system.
Europe is trembling now. All our thoughts in Africa about their superpower status has been laid bare as mere fiction. The same Europe that people risked their lives to cross deserts and seas just to get there has now become a “no-go” area. There are no longer queues for visa at the embassies anymore and no one is interested in going there. All airports are closed, international flight operations suspended, and immigration posts partially closed.
Emulation
For us in Nigeria, this is a rehearsal of what the JUDGEMENT DAY will look like. I am not referring to the apocalyptical end of all things as predicted in the Holy Bible. The judgement day here refers to the time that we will give account of our stewardship, whether here or hereafter. This account will be rendered as a nation, individual, family, group or organisation.
We all know that “God cannot be mocked, whatever a man shows, he shall reap”. Sadly, over the years, we have neglected to follow the wisdom embedded in this divine injunction. Our elites are fond of disregarding the development of the home base and will rather rush to the big cities in Europe and America for everything: shopping, healthcare, education, parties, houses, etc. Since they are the leaders in the government and economy of the nation, they have access to the nation’s wealth and have helped themselves to accumulate more than enough for now and the future. In the process, all the systems and infrastructures that should serve the people have been made to rot away.
With the advent of COVID-19, the recourse to overseas succour is blocked and the people most affected are the same privileged, powerful and wealthy people. They can no longer access their favourite hospitals abroad. The sky is closed against their first class or business class positions in commercial airlines and their private jets. They have no choice but to use the same hospitals that they have neglected and rendered impotent over the years. With their big titles: governors, ministers, managing directors, directors-general, chief of staff, etc., they are now being forced to use the same facility with the commoners.
Had they known that a day like this would come, it is probable that they would have behaved differently and sought the good of the nation rather than their primitive accumulation of wealth and utter disregard for the public good. This COVID-19 rehearsal is good for us, and I will urge our political and business leaders to use their wealth and exposure for the good of the community. Let us build systems and infrastructures that can withstand the stress of COVID-19 and other unplanned events that may come in future.
As a nation, we have neglected everything that we should have concentrated our attention on, and that is why we are struggling to revive the railway system, and spend hours on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, a road that was commissioned by the late General Musa Yaradua in 1978. I wonder why it took us 42 years to expand and rebuild the road.
In Lagos, I am aware that the Daleko Bridge that connected Isolo and Mushin communities was completed and commissioned in 1976. The Isolo to Ikotun axis of the road has been left unattended to for decades, leaving people to suffer on daily basis. I am not sure that the governor is aware that the people living in the communities served by this road are part of Lagos State.
People who live in crowded areas, with about five to six people in a room, are now being asked to stay at home to prevent the spread of a highly contagious disease! The hospitals that are not properly funded are now being called upon to handle emergencies of COVID-19. We could have done much better; and after this COVID-19, a rehearsal of the judgment day, is over, I want to appeal to governments at all levels to be alive to their responsibilities and make things to work for the people.
Emphasis
We have always asked government to treat medicines availability as a national security issue. We pleaded that our drug research and local manufacturing capabilities require a special attention and focus from the government. However, it was business as usual, until COVID-19 came and the fire-brigade action started.
The current stimulus package for the pharmaceutical industry, announced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is good but should have come much earlier. We are faced with shortages of essential medicines which will take months to come back to normal. About 80 per cent of our national consumption is imported from other countries and these countries are currently minding their own problems. India, for instance, has banned export of essential medicines, which should be reserved for their local population. China is going back to work and will take time to return to the pre-COVID-19 activity level.
When this is over, I will urge the government not to drop the ball in the pursuit of growth and development of the pharmaceutical sector. We have allowed politics and other subterranean considerations to becloud our need for a vibrant pharmaceutical sector. I wish to repeat my earlier recommendation that the president should appoint a special adviser of cabinet rank on pharmaceutical affairs. The office will oversee and supervise all activities relating to regulations, research, manufacturing, procurement, distribution and other issues concerning medicines and allied products.
Let’s take the challenge of COVID-19 seriously and do the right things after the episode is over. It may be more catastrophic if we allow other occurrences to meet us unprepared.
To continue to make medicines available and affordable for Nigerians, despite the current constraints in importation of pharmaceutical raw materials and finished products, Indian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Importers in Nigeria, IPMIN, and the Association of Industrial Pharmacists of Nigeria, NAIP, have called on the federal government to exempt their members from tax payment for the years 2020 and 2021, as well as removal of all tariffs on pharmaceutical raw materials and finished products.
Speaking with Pharmanews in separate interviews on how the raging COVID-19 pandemic is affecting their members, President of IPMIN and managing director of Jawa Nigeria Ltd, Chief Varkey Verghese; and the National Chairman of NAIP, Pharm. Ignatius Anukwu, said they are in dire need of palliatives from government to aid quick recovery and survival of their businesses.
National Chairman of NAIP, Pharm. Ignatius Anukwu,and President of IPMIN and managing director of Jawa Nigeria Ltd, Chief Varkey Verghese.
While the Indian pharmaceutical manufacturers and importers further requested the federal government to extend the deadline for the payment of 2019 tax, citing problems arising from delay in their shipments from India, the industrial pharmacists also asked for access to foreign exchange at the official rate, stating that they are currently buying at the market rates with all the volatility that comes with it.
The IPMIN president further said that since February when the Indian government restricted the exportation of certain antibiotics and vitamins, it has been a particularly difficult time for importers, as many of their goods in the process of importation were halted with duties running on them.
“There has been considerable delay in getting the raw materials and finished goods from India. There are two aspects to this. The first is that the lockdown in India has made the ports to slow down their operation. Also, the Indian government restricted the exportation of certain antibiotics and vitamins but now they have made some relaxation in giving export permit on a case-by-case basis and all these are delaying shipments”, Verghese lamented.
He further called on the government to “remove duty for all raw materials imported and VAT payable now on certain raw materials and packing materials.”
Aside from tax exemption, the Indian pharmaceutical manufacturers and importers have also urged the leadership of the National Agency for Food and Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to show more consideration in its registration processes for new products and renewal of existing products, stressing that this will foster ease of doing business in this COVID-19 era.
Emphasising the importance of local manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, he noted that the global pandemic has further awakened the consciousness of Indian importers to local manufacturing, revealing that some of them have commenced contract manufacturing with local manufacturers of essential drugs in the country.
He said: “This is a wake-up call for all concerned stakeholders in the pharma industry to look inward and produce locally and be self-sufficient. To this end, some of our members have already started doing contract manufacturing with existing local manufacturing companies rather than importing these items from India or other countries.”
Speaking in a similar vein, the NAIP national chairman stated that removal of tariffs on raw materials and essential pharmaceutical products will be of immense benefit to both the pharmaceutical companies and the entire citizenry.
“The government would be doing the citizenry a world of good by removing forthwith all tariffs on finished pharmaceutical products and raw materials for medicines in order to make medicines more affordable, especially at this time that earnings will be severely affected by the evolving situation. This will not only improve margins for the pharmaceutical companies but serve as a boost for many of them to quickly re-stock their products once their overseas suppliers resume operations. This will equally reduce the level of shortages that may be occasioned by the prevailing circumstance.
“Access to forex is also very crucial for pharmaceutical companies, as it has been stated that 70 per cent to 80 per cent of our essential medicines are imported, as well as all our raw materials. Therefore, access to forex by pharmaceutical companies at the official rate is key. At present, our members are buying at the current market rates with all the volatility that comes with it. This will eventually lead to higher prices of medicines. Also this thins-out the margins of the companies and challenges their sustainability. The CBN will help us more by selling forex to our members at the official rate,” Anukwu said.
He further mentioned other challenges of pharmaceutical manufacturers and importers, with particular emphasis on the huge debts owed them by government agencies and institutions.
“These debts run into billions of naira,” said the NAIP chairman. “Most of the time, the institutions that owe these monies cite poor funding by government as the reason for not paying. These are supplies for which they have made earnings for their institutions. Apparently, they have diverted the funds which should have been used for the payment of these supplies. This is negatively impacting the pharmaceutical companies and leading to poor remuneration and loss of jobs in the sector as many pharmaceutical companies have gone out of business because of this development. Government and these agencies should pay these debts.”
While applauding the federal government on the recently announced CBN intervention fund for the pharmaceutical industry, Anukwu disclosed that the association is however concerned about the interest rates announced on the fund.
He asserted that the association would need further clarification from the Central Bank as to what percentage the companies would be charged when the repayment falls due. This, he said, is because going by the apex bank’s announcement, the one-year period in which a five per cent rate is effective will elapse by 28 February 2021, after which the rate will revert to nine per cent.
“No company, to my knowledge, has obtained the loan yet. We would like to see a situation in which those who access the loan on or before February 28, 2021 would be allowed to repay it at five per cent. We hope that this will be addressed before the borrowers receive their repayment schedule. We believe that the CBN’s intervention will make a positive difference”, he remarked.
When asked if the association was into any partnership for the production of vaccines or other natural products to combat the lethal virus in the country, Anukwu explained that although there is a memorandum signed with Nigerian Pharmacists in Academia to pursue the commercialisation of products from indigenous research, the association’s research grant for the project, called the Nigerian Medicines Development Project, is too small to support research in vaccine development.
He said: “Research is a long-term commitment and research doesn’t just happen because there is COVID-19. It is only those countries who have the infrastructure, the funds and the scientists that will make the difference in a sustainable manner in vaccine development. In Nigeria, we have the scientists but almost no funding for research and very poor infrastructure. NAIP’s resources are too meagre for this scale of enterprise.
“Furthermore, none of the federal, state or private universities has a biosafety level (BSL)3 laboratory to conduct the requisite research on SARS-CoV-2, being a very virulent and highly contagious virus. Also, due to the high cost of research and development, I am not aware that any of the faculties of pharmacy or any of our members is working on any vaccine at the moment.
“The federal government has also not made any pronouncement as to making available any funds for research on COVID-19 to the Nigerian Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) or to any of the faculties of pharmacy in the country.
“The only private and independent vaccine producing company I know in Nigeria is Biovaccines Nigeria Limited. I have not heard that they are carrying out any research on the development of vaccine for COVID-19. Vaccine production is highly technical and recomplex technology and requires not only huge funding but also a lot of time and commitment before getting a product ready for the market. Having said this, it is important to note that beyond vaccines, there are other efforts that are being explored in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19.
“Vaccines primarily confer immunity. However, the development of new molecules or the exploration of the activity of existing molecules against SARS-CoV-2 as well as researching the activity of herbal medicines on the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 are other veritable options.”
Speaking on steps being taken by members of the association in resolving their problems, Anukwu noted that, rather waiting for the government’s support as they had done over the years, they have, in recent times, decided to address these challenges a bit differently.
“We are mobilising our members and our resources towards the establishment of pharmaceutical manufacturing parks in Nigeria. This will provide a private-sector approach to coping with some of these challenges. In addition, this model is very likely to attract government’s interest and support when it becomes operational and successful,” he enthused.
In a related development, the IPMIN president has condemned the stigmatisation of drugs and test kits imported from China and India, saying since all countries of the world are affected by the coronavirus, it is imperative that all imported pharmaceuticals be treated alike on arrival in the country.
He therefore pledged on behalf of all IPMIN members to abide by NAFDAC guidelines on imported drugs in the country.
He said: “We should be fair in our judgement; all countries in the world are facing the COVID-19 pandemic. If we import anything from any country in the world, be it Europe, Britain, US, China, or India, they are to be treated equally.
“All our members will follow NAFDAC guidelines while receiving any imported goods from any country in the world and in our opinion, there is no need to single out Chinese products.”
We may not be in the type of work we love when we are young because some factors come into play in deciding our work or career. Usually we believe that what we want to do should be closely related to what we studied in the college or university. Or, it may be where there is an employment opportunity or where the remuneration is attractive or even where we have a personal connection, which is a common factor in Nigeria.
Many people find themselves in such situations and only try to encourage themselves to hang on to the work. This is one reason many find themselves drifting in the labour market. Many spend decades doing what they don’t enjoy. People confine themselves to such jobs and patiently wait for their retirement. This is why many workers are average and do not have job satisfaction. This type of work limits their innovative abilities, and their talents and gifts may not be properly deployed. Therefore, they hardly distinguish themselves.
Pharm.(Sir) Ifeanyi Atueyi
Some workers know full well that their current employments are just work-in-progress and are on their way to somewhere. Many a time, such jobs may be lucrative and therefore they stay put because of the financial benefits as every worker has some financial needs. You acquire money but money cannot solve stress and emotional problems.
When I left the university in 1964, I had no other choice but to be employed as a pharmacist because I studied Pharmacy. Even getting into the pharmacy school was just because I did not know exactly what else to do with my Physics, Chemistry and Zoology subjects at the Higher School Certificate level. My subject combination was best for Medicine but I had no interest in Medicine.
Consequently, I found myself graduating as a pharmacist and getting into some professional services as medical representative, retail pharmacist, hospital pharmacist, production pharmacist, and even military pharmacist during the Nigeria-Biafra war. I found myself working for American, British, Lebanese and Nigerian companies. In all these, I did not have job satisfaction, neither did I know the direction I was going in life.
From 1964 to 1978, I drifted from one job to the other, not knowing what I actually wanted to do and could not imagine how my working life would end. There is no doubt that today many people are in similar situations. They may not be drifting from job to job as I did because opportunities are limited today but they don’t know where they are going and are not enjoying what they are doing.
It was much later in life that my spiritual eyes were opened. When I started reading my Bible more seriously, I discovered that despite the wrong decisions and choices I made , God did not abandon me because He had already planned what I would do for Him. Even in cases of gross disobedience, He showed me mercy and continued to demonstrate His love for me despite being stiff-necked.
God allowed the Israelites to wonder about in the wilderness for 40 years for a journey that should have taken only 40 days, to teach them some lessons. In the same way, He caused me to work in various places as part of preparation for the assignment He had destined for me, even before I was born. I realised that each of His children has been called to do something special and it is our responsibility to seek it, find it and be faithful to it.
We need to have a close relationship with God in order to succeed. Moses was called to lead the people of Israel. Isaiah and Jeremiah were called to be prophets. Paul was called to be an apostle to the Gentiles. Let us not forget evangelists like Billy Graham and Reinhard Bonnke. In the same way, people have been called into various services or ministries. I believe that God has implanted in every person a purpose which they are appointed to accomplish. This calling can be pursued in a range of occupations, careers or professions.
Unfortunately, many fail to find their true work because they are not serious with seeking the will of the Creator. Some depend on counsellors, teachers, parents, friends, guardians or even pastors for direction. These are good sources but the best and true Source is the Creator. Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”
Do you know that tomato and carrot have more in common than their fascinating colours? Well, in case you are not aware, recent studies have shown that beyond the potency of their pigments lie powerful phytochemicals that help combat high blood pressure and other heart diseases.
According to a study published in the American Heart Journal, a short-term treatment with antioxidant-rich tomato extract can reduce blood pressure in patients with grade-1 hypertension, naive to drug therapy.
The research, titled, “Natural antioxidants from tomato extract reduce blood pressure in patients with grade-1 hypertension” was a single-blind, placebo-controlled trial. 31 subjects with grade-1 hypertension, without concomitant diseases, who required no antihypertensive or lipid-lowering drug therapy, and who were recruited from primary care clinics, completed the trial.
A glass of tomato and carrot juice on display.
Having subjected the patients to a four week placebo period, then an eight week treatment period with tomato extract, the result indicated that the systolic blood pressure decreased from 144 (SE +/- 1.1) to 134 mm Hg (SE +/- 2, P < .001), and diastolic blood pressure decreased from 87.4 (SE +/- 1.2) to 83.4 mm Hg (SE +/- 1.2, P < .05).
Dietary preparations
Tomatoes can be prepared in different ways, which include: cooking them with soups, putting them in salads, using them as garnish, and so on. There are other juices one can mix tomato juice with to form a perfect blend. These include beetroot juice that is freshly squeezed and also carrot juice. One can even mix other vegetable juices along with the tomato juice and drink.
Vegetable juices can be made from fresh celery, carrots or cucumbers. Beetroot juice mixed with tomato juice is very beneficial in preventing increase in blood pressure.
Carrot also is rich in Beta carotene, which is a powerful antioxidant which helps in maintaining a healthy skin and also keeping one away from many diseases. It is also said to have potassium in it, which helps to balance the high levels of sodium associated with hypertension and keeps blood pressure under control.
The high soluble fibre content in carrot reduces cholesterol by binding LDL, the bad cholesterol, and also increases the HDL, which helps in reducing blood clots and heart diseases. It is a good source of alkaline elements, which purify and revitalise the blood, and balances the acid alkaline ratio in the body.
In a chat with the Country Director, Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), Dr Francis Aminu, on the nutritional benefits of tomato and carrot, he revealed that the high lycopene content in tomato and carrot is responsible for the decrease in blood pressure in humans.
According to him, “a meta-analysis performed on the effect of lycopene on systolic blood pressure of all trails suggested a significant blood pressure reducing effect (-5. 60 + 5.26 mmHg), but no significant effect on diastolic blood pressure. Blood pressure lowering properties of lycopene have been attributed to the stimulation of nitric oxide production in the endothelium.
“In addition, it’s been found to prevent cancer of the breast, bladder, cervix, colon and rectum, stomach, lung, ovaries, pancreas, and prostate. It is also used to prevent diabetes, diseases of the heart and blood vessels (cardiovascular disease), cataracts, and asthma.”
Aminu further stated that leveraging on emerging science about tomatoes and tomato products may be one simple and effective strategy to help individuals increase vegetable intake, leading to improved overall eating patterns, and ultimately, better health.
Clarifying the nutritional difference between the heated and the fresh tomato, he noted, contrary to popular opinion, that tomato products subjected to the heat process have increased bioavailability of Lycopene rather than the anticipated decrease.
Aminu, who is also a public health nutritionist, said that “the nutritional content of fresh vegetables depends on various factors, including seasonality and availability in the region. Many vegetables travel long distances to end up in the produce section of the local grocery store. When vegetables are shipped across several states, they are exposed to extreme light, heat, and temperature conditions, which can cause a loss of important nutrients, such as thiamine and vitamins A and C. Many fresh vegetables that travel many miles by truck or boat are harvested before they reach peak ripeness, so vitamins and nutrients have not had the time to reach complete potency. The produce still may show outward signs of ripening, but the vegetables will never have the same nutritional composition as fully developed plants.”
Nutritional benefits of tomato
Dr Aminu also explained the phytonutrients of the duo, stating that tomatoes and tomato products are very rich in lycopene, while carrots are rich in carotene, both of which are hypertension-reducing phytochemicals.
Tomatoes and tomato-based foods account for more than 85 per cent of all the dietary sources of lycopene. Eating a medium sized fresh tomato can provide a person with about 23 mg of the daily requirement for Vitamin C. Some other vitamins found in tomato juice include Vitamin A, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6 and small quantities of Vitamin B12.
Vitamin A is very essential for maintaining good teeth and strong bones. This is especially important for growing children. The listed B vitamins help in increasing one’s energy and keeping the nervous system healthy.
Tomato juice also helps in the prevention of eczema in some people. Some other health benefits that one gets from drinking Tomato juice include aid in the prevention of eye diseases and cardiovascular diseases.
Drinking tomato juice regularly also helps in preventing prenatal health issues. The tomato juice nutritional content table indicates that tomatoes also contain niacin, folate, vitamin C, vitamin E and vitamin K. Some of the main minerals that are found in tomatoes include calcium, sodium, manganese, potassium, phosphorous, iron, copper, zinc and chromium.
Additionally, raw tomato juice is found to contain potassium. This is an essential mineral that is required for the human body to reduce malaise and general overall body weakness.
Tomato juice is recommended for people who are suffering from heart conditions or who are recovering from heart attacks. This juice is almost always recommended for most patients who are recovering from various diseases.
Tomato juice’s benefits for the skin, as well as the face, are widely known among people all over the world. Drunk twice a day, it is found in some cases to reduce the presence of acne and get rid of an acne infection faster.
One can make a face pack using fresh tomato base. One should apply this puree over the affected areas of one’s skin at least twice in a day for 10 to 15 minutes each time. Rinse this mixture off with some warm water.
Tomato juice can be mixed with other fresh fruits or vegetables to make great face packs. Try mixing some tomato juice with pieces of freshly cut papaya and try applying this on the face for about 15 to 20 minutes. Then wash off gently with warm water for best results.
Similarly tomato juice can be mixed with other fresh ingredients to make some of the best face cleansers and packs.
The vitamin A found in tomato juice is also beneficial for good hair growth. It helps in keeping one’s hair strong and shiny. Some other tomato juice benefits for men include the good effects it has on improving one’s appetite and also in aiding good digestion.
Tomato juice is rich in Vitamin C, which is additionally very good for pregnant women. Vitamin C is also known for its ability to enhance one’s immune system. One can try drinking tomato juice for arthritis-related problems. Tomato juice also helps in the prevention of inflammation and pain that is associated with arthritis.
One could make use of tomato juice for alcoholics, in order to get rid of the effects of a hangover. To lower the severity of a hangover, one should mix about 100 ml of freshly squeezed tomato juice along with the same quantity of cucumber juice and about 10 ml of spinach juice. To this, add a tablespoon of olive oil. The person should drink this tomato juice cocktail before they go to bed.
Tomato juice is also known for its ability to prevent constipation problems. This juice should be mixed with fresh spinach juice. It helps to activate the person’s liver and thus prevent them getting constipated.
One could also use tomato juice for diabetes because of its nutritional properties. Tomato juice is also recommended for those who are suffering from kidney stones and gall stones. For this, the patients are advised to eat the tomatoes without any seeds in them. Tomato juice also works as a natural antiseptic and thus helps in guarding the human body against any kind of common infections in day to day life. Tomato juice can also help in stopping diarrhea in some cases.
Nutritional benefits of carrot
The high soluble fibre content in carrot reduces cholesterol by binding LDL, the bad cholesterol, and also increases the HDL, which helps in reducing blood clots and heart diseases.
Carrots are great for dental health, as they kill harmful germs in the mouth and prevent tooth decay.
Carrots aid digestion by increasing saliva and supplying the minerals, vitamins and enzymes required for it.
Regular consumption of carrots helps in preventing gastric ulcers and digestive disorders.
Raw carrots are used as a home remedy for treating worms in children.
Raw or grated carrots can be used for wounds, cuts and inflammation.
Carrots are rich in carotenoids, which are beneficial to blood sugar regulation.
Carrots contain a phyto-nutrient called falcarinol, which helps in promoting colon health and a reducing the risk of cancers.
Consuming carrots regularly is known to improve the quality of breast milk in mothers.
It also helps in increasing the menstrual flow.
Consuming carrots regularly can improve the appearance of skin, hair, nails etc and also improve eye health.
References: FPharmacogn Rev. 2011 Jan-Jun; 5(9): 30–40; Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry and Vol. 1 No. 1 2012 www.phytojournal.com Page | 33
With the 193 new cases of COVID-19 announced Thursday night, the total number of infections in the country has surpassed 5000.
Making the disclosure via its verified Twitter handle, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said the country on Thursday, recorded 193 new cases of COVID-19, 167 fatalities, 1180 recoveries, and a total number of infections as 5,162.
The NCDC also said that three new patients have been confirmed dead to the virus in the country, bringing the total number of deaths to 167.
Division of the new cases to states is as follows: 58-Lagos 46-Kano 35-Jigawa 12-Yobe 9-FCT 7-Ogun 5-Plateau 5-Gombe 4-Imo 3-Edo 3-Kwara 3-Borno 1-Bauchi 1-Nasarawa 1-Ondo
Nigerian media guru and founder of DAAR Communications, Raymond Dokpesi Snr has tested negative for COVID-19 and has been discharged.
Dokpesi Snr was found to have tested positive for the virus on 1 May alongside seven other members of his household.
Raymond Dokpesi Snr
He was discharged from the isolation centre at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada.
According to him in a letter he personally authored, he asid he was exceptionally indebted to God Almighty for keeping and protecting him and his entire family all through the isolation at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada Isolation Centre.
Continuing, “We are better acquainted with the personal sacrifices many Nigerians are making to ensure that we collectively defeat this pandemic. This cuts across the policymakers, the care providers and even the cleaners, whose job puts them at constant risk of exposure.”
His positive status was announced three days after his son and Chairman of the board of DAAR Communications, Raymond Dokpesi Jnr tested positive for the virus.
Dokpesi was discharged with two of his grandchildren, while the test results of others are being expected.
The number of Nigerians who have been discharged following recovery from COVID-19 has exceeded the 1,000 mark.
As of May 12, the Nigeria Centre Disease Control (NCDC) noted that a total of 959 people who earlier tested positive for COVID-19 had recovered fully from the disease.
Following the latest update from NCDC on Wednesday, May 13, Nigeria’s recovery figure rose to 1,070 after 111 patients were discharged from various treatment centres across the country.
Despite the increasing number of recoveries, Nigeria confirmed more positive cases of COVID-19 with the number of infections now at 4,971.
The nation’s death toll rose from 158 to 164, with six new fatalities.
Despite claims from several traditional practitioners on the cure of COVID-19, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) said in a statement that it has only received one application to endorse a product as a possible treatment option for the symptoms of the virus.
The Director-General of the agency, Moji Adeyeye, said other claims about a possible cure for COVID-19 only exist on social media and the pages of newspapers.
Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye
Prof. Adeyeye’s statement is in reaction to several claims by some Alternative Medicines Practitioners that they have a cure for COVID-19.
The minister of health, Osagie Ehanire, earlier said all herbal medicines in Nigeria must be tested by the agency to prove the efficacy of the drugs.
He also said such drugs will first be tested on animals before it can be certified. Adeyeye said practitioners who claimed to have a cure for the virus are yet to submit an application to test the efficacy of their drugs.
She said the only application received is for treating the symptoms of the virus and not the virus itself.
“The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) as at the time of this press release has only received application from one company for a product the company is presenting (for approval) to the Agency for the treatment of the symptoms of Covid-19, and not for the cure of Covid-19 as a disease. She said.
a) Severe constricting chest pain, often radiating from the precordium to the left shoulder and down the arm, due to insufficient blood supply to the heart that is usually caused by coronary disease
b) An often fatal form of arrhythmia characterized by rapid, irregular fibrillar twitching of the ventricles of the heart instead of normal contractions, resulting in a loss of pulse
c) The cardiovascular condition in which the heart ability to pump blood weakens
A survivor of the novel Coronavirus, and a former Senior Special Assistant to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, on Public Affairs, Dr Doyin Okupe, has narrated his treatment regimen to news men listing hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin, zinc sulfate and vitamin c, as some of the medicines used for his treatment while in at the isolation centre.
Okupe, who stated that there is no universal medical agreement on specific treatment regimen for COVID-19, noted that most of the medicines used worldwide have no scientific validity.
Dr Doyin Okupe
The former spokesman to the ex-president, who had a medical background, in a statement he titled: “The medications I took for my COVID-19 virus infections”, said he commenced his treatment with the hydroxychloroquine regime 4 days to isolation centre.
He narrated: “I commenced my treatment with the hydroxychloroquine regime 4 days to my isolation. This was because I read extensively on various options of treatment for COVID-19 and I follow the global debate on its pros & cons of the treatment.
“With my medical background and local consultation with colleagues, I already made up my mind that the chloroquine regime was so far the most promising. I ordered for the drugs just in case someone close or even I should unfortunately pick up the virus.
Okupe listed his treatment regimen at the isolation centre as follows: “hydroxychloroquine, 400mg daily for 2days,, there after 400mg daily for 3days, 500mg daily for 10 days. Zinc sulphate 100mg daily till today and vitamin C 1200 mg daily till now.
“I also took copious amount of ginger, garlic, tumeric and lemon. In kaduna I am told that they add dongoyaro leaves to the above mixture and drink liberally”, he explained.
He added that he had malaria and cough while on admission, but it was effectively treated with an antimalarial, and a fairly large dose of Augmentin for 7 days, respectively.
Dr Okupe however cautioned people with heart related conditions to be careful with the use of hydroxychloroquine, saying they need to consult with their doctors before taking it.
“I must warn here that if you have cardiac arrhythmias, you will need to consult your physician before you take hydroxychloroquine. I did, so I was advised to use 200mg twice daily instead of 400mg twice daily for 2days”, he stated.
He further mentioned early detection as a means of easily trapping the virus saying: “It is known that when the virus first gain access to the body it stays in the nasal cavity and the throat for 2 to 3days. In this position the virus itself is vulnerable. It does naturally in temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius. If at this stage you can consume large quantities of hot water with lemon you can abort the attack.
“However the scientific truth we know about treatment for viral infection is that ultimately what eventually works is the innate capability of the immune system of individual patients. It is the immunity level that eventually decide the course of the infection in each individual. That is why age and existing comobidity factors are crucial to survival and wellbeing.
“Hence for those who are not sick, you should ingest immune boosting drugs and preparations like zinc sulphate, Immunace, Reload and similar immunity enhancing drugs” he explained.
President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) Pharm. (Mazi) Sam Ohuabunwa has called on the Nigerian government and the Presidential Task Force,o the Coronavirus pandemic to take advantage of pharmacists expertise, to strengthen the fight against the disease, stressing that Nigerian pharmacists are capable of conducting COVID-19 tests, using the desktop test kits, as being done by their counterparts in other nations.
Ohuabunwa made the submission on the heels of the creation of new testing centres for COVID-19 across the country, calling the attention of government to the need to deploy test kits to pharmacies for the exercise.
Pharm. (Mazi) Samuel Ohuabunwa
Speaking with Pharmanews an exclusive interview, the number one pharmacist in Nigeria said: “Nigerian pharmacists have the capacity to carry out COVID-19 tests using the desktop test kits that are being used in many nations today. After all, pharmacists are already carrying out tests for malaria, diabetes, and others”.
It will be recalled that the International Pharmaceutical Federation, FIP has recently called on governments across the globe to authorise and incorporate the network of pharmacies in their countries as testing centres, following the adoption of evidence-based protocols for the usability of rapid point-of-care tests for COVID-19 in appropriate individuals in the community setting.
The apex Pharmacy institution in the world also urged leadership of nations to acknowledge the roles being played by pharmacists in the current global pandemic, as they are exposed to the risks of the lethal virus without adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) thus called for the provision of PPE for all pharmacists, whether in the hospital or community.
Commending the federal government on the recent increment in health workers salaries, Ohuabunwa said it is a good start, which can be improved upon, noting that the most significant breakthrough is that all healthcare professional groups were involved in the negotiation and it was equitably done.
“That is what we are fighting for. Healthcare is a team work and all must be taken together. We do not preach equality but equity. We believe state government and private sector employers will borrow a leaf from this development”, he noted. On whether the increment in their wages is commensurate to the magnitude of risk they are exposured to, he expressed optimism that it is starting point for government, although all professions have their own risks.
However, he said “healthcare professionals know they in risky professions especially in dealing with infectious diseases. So no one can sufficiently compensate them for the risks but this helps to boost their morale”.
When asked the number of pharmacists among the 40 healthcare workers who tested positive to COVID-19 as announced by the minister of health, he said the list has not being made available to them, while suspecting that some pharmacists may be among them.
“We still do not have the list, to know all those affected. But I suspect there may be some pharmacists”, he replied .
Concerning the operation of the Chinese medical team in the country on the expiration of their 14-day isolation, Ohuabunwa expressed the view of PSN on their stay, saying they should not be allowed to manage COVID-19 patients directly, rather, Nigerian medical team should continue with their treatment .
“Our stand is that they should not be involved in directly managing Nigerian COVID-19 patients. We have enough Nigerian healthcare professionals. But they can advice. We can learn from their experiences and they can help set up the equipment they donated”, he stated
Drugs that could be used to manage the condition of a patient diagnosed with shingles about 3 months ago and has received famciclovir tablets 250 mg three times daily for 7 days but is still complaining of pain in the area although he reports that the rash has now cleared include?
The Federal Government of Nigeria has confirmed that the relaxation of the lockdown will be reviewed this week.
The National Coordinator of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, Sani Aliyu, disclosed it during the daily briefing on Tuesday.
Aliyu said the task force would not hesitate to change strategy if the current directive is not working.
“You are probably aware that by the end of this week, we will be coming to the end of the second week of easing the lockdown and we will be taking further decisions based on the review of the performance of the restrictions that we have in place.
“And we will not hesitate to change our strategy if it looks like it is not working.”
Responding to the post on Twitter, Stella said “If the spread is more significant because of easing the lockdown, then they should reinstate the lockdown and come up with a plan on how to enforce safety guidelines pending when they relax it next”.@Stella.
-Calls for submission of COVID-19 related herbal remedies
As more and more herbal remedies for the treatment of the novel Coronavirus are being promoted on social media, even with the offer of the Madagascar’s COVID Organics, the management of National Agency for Food and Drug, Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has maintained that any herbal medicine with a claim of cure must undergo clinical evaluations.
While the agency acknowledged the submission of only one herbal formulation for the treatment of the infection, it called on others with herbal preparations for COVID-19 to send them to the agency for toxicological test.
NAFDAC Logo
The NAFDAC Director General, Prof. Moji Adeyeye stated in a release mailed to Pharmanewsonline: “NAFDAC as at the time of this press release has only received application from one company for a product the company is presenting (for approval) to the Agency for the treatment of the symptoms of Covid-19, and not for the cure of Covid-19 as a disease.
“A claim of a cure must be subjected to clinical evaluation through well controlled, randomized clinical trials following an approved clinical trial protocol” she stressed.
She explained further the operations of the agency saying they only lists herbal medicines based on historical perspective on the use of the products after carrying out toxicological and microbiological evaluations in the laboratories to ensure that they are, at the minimum, safe. The listing status is valid for two years and is renewable.
She continued: “It does not validate the efficacy claims being made for the products hence, the labels must bear a disclaimer informing the consumer “The claims have not been evaluated by NAFDAC”. This minimum requirement of ‘proof of safety’ is the agency’s way of encouraging production of herbal remedies from the country’s rich diversity of plants”.
The NAFDAC boss highlighted efforts of the agency in advancing the development of herbal products, explaining how they set up the Nigerian Herbal Medicine Product Committee (HMPC) which brings together manufacturers, academia, researchers and relevant stakeholders by bridging the gap often created between traditional medicine practitioners (possible patent holders) and drug manufacturers, whose responsibility it would be to formulate the products.
“This collaboration, brokered by the agency, aims at translating research of herbs into products of commerce with proven safety & efficacy. The committee has met three times since inception, on 15 March 2019; 6 September 2019 and the most recent one being a virtual meeting on Thursday 8 May 2020.
“Call for expression of interest for the COVID-19 related medicines was made; several researchers and practitioners have responded and are being guided to submit such medicines to NAFDAC for expedited review. The agency continues to encourage all stakeholders to present the products of their research findings and allow these remedies go through internationally recognised process of approval through pre-clinical and where applicable, clinical trials”, she stated.
Adejeje reiterated that NAFDAC as the agency that has been saddled with the mandate of safeguarding the health of the citizenry, will continue to make sure that only medicinal product (including herbal remedies) that have proven safety data will be approved for use by the public.
Pharmacists under the umbrella of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) have craved the indulgence of the President, Major General Rted Muhammadu Buhari to extend import waiver on medical supplies to essential drugs, as clinicians have been employing combinations of different drug regimen to treat COVID-19 patients.
The PSN President, Pharm. (Mazi) Sam Ohuabunwa, noted that there is no established treatment protocol the world over for the novel Coronavirus, as clinicians have employed combinations of different drug regimen to treat the manifested symptoms.
Speaking through a press release, he said: “We request that the waiver be extended to all essential drugs and not only those related to COVID-19 specifically, for many reasons”.
Mazi. Sam Ohuabunwa, president, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN)
Ohuabunwa, explained that there is supply chain pressure, which has brought about spike in prices of essential drugs, and have left patients financially incapacitated. He also pointed out the absence of medical palliative for the populace for now, though government is providing food palliatives, but no medical provision, for the citizenry with limited funds at their disposal.
The PSN helms man said: “Most of these repurposed medications are already in use by other patients leading to pressure on the supply chain thereby instigating price increase.
“Nigerians who are on eased phased of the lockdown have reduced disposable income to buy medicines. Government is giving food palliative but no medicine palliative. Removing duties and levies on all essential medicines will be one way to provide medical palliative for the Nigerian poor”, he averred.
For the most vulnerable to COVID-19 infection, the aged population, with some underlying chronic diseases, he said they need essential medicines like antidiabetics, antihypertensives and anticancer medications, to survive the period.
“With the blow of the COVID-19 on the world’s economy, the people will find it difficult to maintain optimal health if the entire cost of medication is unleashed on them.
“Once again, we commend Mr President and his team, for these timely interventions and implore on him to ensure strict implementation of the order. We will not hesitate to point the way to other low hanging fruits towards the realisation of world best practises in pharmaceutical care”, he noted.
A railway ticket officer has died of Coronavirus after being spat at by a man who claimed to be COVID-19 infected
Belly Mujinga, 47, who had underlying respiratory problems, was working at Victoria Station in London, when she was assaulted, along with a female colleague.
Within days of the incident, both women fell ill with the virus, as reported by BBC. British Transport Police said an inquiry had been launched to trace the man who spat at the duo.
Mrs Mujinga was on the concourse of Victoria Station recently, when she was approached by the suspect.
Her husband Lusamba Gode Katalay said the man had asked his wife what she was doing and why she was there.
“She told me she was working and the man said he had the virus and spat on her,” he added.
Mujinga was admitted to Barnet Hospital on 2 April and was put on a ventilator. But she died three days later, the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA), said.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman described the attack on the key worker as “despicable”.
“I thought she might be asleep, but the doctor phoned me to tell me she had died,” he said.
She was a good person, a good mother, and a good wife. She was a caring person and would take care of everybody.” According to BBC, 10 people attended Mujinga’s funeral, including her 11-year-old daughter.
The International Pharmaceutical Federation, FIP has called on governments across the globe to authorise and incorporate the network of pharmacies in their countries as testing centres, following the adoption of evidence-based protocols for the usability of rapid point-of-care tests for COVID-19 in appropriate individuals in the community setting.
The apex Pharmacy institution in the world also urged leadership of nations to acknowledge the roles being played by pharmacists in the current global pandemic, as they are exposed to the risks of the lethal virus without adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) thus called for the provision of PPEs for all pharmacists, whether in the hospital or community.
FIP President, Mr Dominique Jordan and PSN President, Pharm. (Mazi) Sam Ohuabunwa
Mr Dominique Jordan, FIP president in a recent statement made available to Pharmanewsonline charged world leaders on recognition of pharmacists in the global war against the novel Coronavirus saying: “Authorising and harnessing the network of pharmacies to contribute to mass testing across populations, following the adoption of evidence-based protocols for the usability of rapid point-of-care tests for COVID-19 in appropriate individuals in the community setting, is required.
He continued: “The valuable service that pharmacists and their teams provide to communities, and their important contribution to easing the huge strain being placed on health systems during the current coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic is now clearer than ever. We know that these colleagues are going to great lengths and subjecting themselves to risks in order to ensure continuity of care, particularly to the vulnerable, and to maintain a robust and efficient medicines and medical product supply chain as well as providing much needed advice and services,” Jordan asserted.
The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) has also thrown its weight behind the FIP’s position, saying recognition of pharmacists as full members of the healthcare team combating COVID-19 is paramount, noting that there should be no discrimination of any sorts, as it is being practiced in Lagos State, although the Society is in discussion with the leadership of the team, especially at the Infectious Disease Centre (IDH) Yaba.
The PSN President, Pharm. (Mazi) Sam Ohuabunwa in an exclusive chat with Pharmanewsonline, urged governments at all levels to make PPEs available to all pharmacists to enable them discharge their duties without the fear of contracting the virus.
“While some pharmacists are provided, some are not. We had earlier on drawn attention to this. Therefore we agree fully with the FIP that pharmacists in the hospitals and even those in the community who are the first point of contact with most sick persons should be provided with PPEs
Speaking on the welfare of pharmacists in the country, Ohuabunwa frown at the discrimination against pharmacists in some states and hospitals, saying it is so appalling. “Yes some pharmacists are included in the new increment in hazard allowance, but overall there is so much disheartening discrimination. In Lagos, some hospital pharmacists are excluded from the allowances for spurious reasons, but we learnt the leadership of the IDH team trying to resolve the issue. In the FCT, pharmacists are lumped together with cleaners, while their other professional groups are paid much higher allowances.
“For us this is patently wrong, Ohuabunwa continued, “It is important to state that all the COVID-19 patients are taking one medicine or another. And in all cases these medicines are dispensed by pharmacists and given to the patients directly or indirectly and so remain critically exposed either way. Our hope is that the Lagos State Government will correct this anomaly so that the team morale can be sustained in the best interest of the patient”, he remarked.
The FIP further pressed home some points on the welfare of pharmacists, stating that financial aid should be provided to pharmacies in the event of temporary closure for health reasons; arrangement of home delivery of medicines and pharmaceutical services to patients who must stay at home should be funded by governments; and medicines at risk of shortage should be identified and mitigation plans put in place.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has made a disclosure of 146 new cases of COVID-19 and increase in fatalities from 150 to 158, with 4787 total cases.
With the 146 new cases, Nigeria now has a total of 4,787 cases, 959 recoveries, and 158 fatalities.
An analysis of cases according to states is shown below: 146 new cases of #COVID19; 57-Lagos 27-Kano 10-Kwara 9-Edo 8-Bauchi 7-Yobe 4-Kebbi 4-Oyo 3-Katsina 3-Niger 2-Plateau 2-Borno 2-Sokoto 2-Benue 1-Gombe 1-Enugu 1-Ebonyi 1-Ogun 1-FCT 1-Rivers
The NCDC made the announcement via it Twitter handle thus: “4787 cases of #COVID19 in Nigeria Discharged: 959, and Deaths: 158”.
Sequel to the decision of the federal government to airlift consignment of the Madagascar herbal cure from Equatorial Guinea, for the treatment of Nigerians with COVID-19, concerned stakeholders including the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, PSN, National Association of Nigerian Traditional Medicine Practitioners (NANTMP), Pax Herbal Clinic and Research Laboratories, among other have kicked against the decision, describing it as a shameful and distasteful act.
They expressed their disappointment in the government’s insensitive action to the people’s call for the use of locally made herbals for the treatment of patients with the condition, saying Nigeria has some of the best scientists (Pharmaceutical, Medical, Biochemical, Biological etc.) in the world who have done so much work on natural and herbal medicines.
L-R: Pharm. (Mazi) Sam Ohuabunwa; Prof. T.O. Omon; and Rev. Father Anselm Adodo
The PSN President, Pharm. (Mazi) Sam Ohuabunwa, in a press release sent to Pharmanewsonline said the Society received the news with utter disbelief as the nation is greater than Madagascar in all ramifications with about 174 Universities (43 federal, 52 state and 79 private), 20 faculties of Pharmacy and about 69 federal-funded research institutes (including National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research & Development and the National Institute for Medical Research) while Madagascar has only 6 universities, 1 faculty of Pharmacy and 9 research centres!
The number-one pharmacist in the country said Nigeria has developed a pharmacopeia of natural and herbal products and has one of the richest flora and fauna – potent sources of phytomedicines. “Since the outbreak of the COVID-19, a number of them have raised their voices that they have herbal and natural products that can be used to treat or manage COVID-19. Some have patents. Many herbal companies and producers have announced specifically that they have herbal formulations that can do what this ‘invention’ from Madagascar can do”, he emphasized.
He continued: “We have raised our voices severally that the federal government should review these claims and help put them through clinical evaluation as most of these producers cannot afford to conduct clinical trials. We have recommended that a portion of the nearly 25 Billion Naira donated/allocated for the COVID-19 pandemic should be dedicated for local research and development. But our government has remained essentially silent only waiting to participate in WHO sponsored or mandated trials. We have been told that Nigeria is participating in the WHO solidarity trial, but nothing on trying our own inventions and formulations.
“Now we want to import COVID Organics from Madagascar to try? Why are we like this? If the world can supply us synthetic and chemically-sophisticated medicines which we apparently lack the technology to produce, why must we wait for the world to supply us herbal formulations which we can easily make and which we have similar products”, he argued.
The PSN President therefore called on government to save Nigerian pharmaceutical scientists and other scientists from the shame of having the country import and try herbal remedies which God has given the nation in abundance and some of which our grandfathers and grandmothers have used for ages. “Let us try our own local formulations before we try COVID Organics or any other imported remedy. Every well-meaning nation has been in a race to find cures, remedies and other medical supplies used for COVID-19, while we seem to wait for other nations to solve our problems”, he quipped.
The President, National Association of Nigerian Traditional Medicine Practitioners (NANTMP) Prof. T.O. Omon, was also of the same view with the PSN President, saying Madagascar is a very small country with not more than 20 million population, that will dictate the pace of herbal medicine practice to Nigeria of about 200 million population.
Omon, in an exclusive chat with Pharmanewsonline said “We have told federal government that Madagascar is a small country of not more than 20 million, and they cannot be telling us in Nigeria with population of 200 million the way forward in traditional herbal medicine practice. But if they are the ones the government want to listen to on herbal practice, it is not the best.
He said since the novel Coronavirus is a global pandemic, God wants every nation to look inward and develop its own cure for the infection, rather than looking outward for a solution, when there are several herbal options to test for the best result.
“COVID-19 is a disease that God wants every country to look inward to local herbs to save their people, since there is no option of foreign medical trips, and it is not a time to go for foreign medical trips. If Nigeria can come out of the quagmire of sheepishly using other peoples’ invention by discovering our own local herbal cure for the infection, we will become a healthy country that can make significant contribution to the healthcare development of its populace”.
As a mini-trial method for any Nigerian herbal medicine with the claim of curing the infection, Prof. Omon urged the government to use such side by side Madagascar herbal drug for the treatment of patients, saying if the local formulation proves more effective than the imported Madagascar product, then further importation will be unnecessary.
“We can’t compare one thing except they are two. So when Madagascar cure is here, Nigeria government should use it side by side Nigerian local preparation, and if they see that our won is more effective, that there is no need importing any herbal drug again”, he said.
Rev. Father Anselm Adodo, founder of Pax Herbal Clinic and Research Laboratories, has also decried the government’s action, saying there is a disconnect with the Nigerian government and the peoples ’desire, as everyone, even in the Ewu village is unhappy with the decision.
The Ewu Monk, who spoke withPharmanerwsonline in an exclusive chat said “We need to identify what is wrong with this government, so that it can be rectified in due time”.
The natural medicine practitioner narrated how people have amusingly told him to take his herbal medicine to Ghana for treatment of COVID-19 patients, perhaps the Nigerian government can order for it from there.
Poised to reduce the increasing numbers of COVID-19 cases in the country, the federal government has joined her African counterparts to order for the much noised Madagascar herbal drug, COVID Organics, for the treatment of COVID-19 patients in the country .
Disclosing its plans on Monday, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, revealed that President Muhammadu Buhari has asked the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 to pick up Madagascar’s herbal drug –COVID Organics – from Equatorial Guinea.
Mustapha said Nigeria’s consignment had been sent to Equatorial Guinea from where it will be airlifted to Abuja.
Bottles of the Madagascar herbal drug on display
He further explained that for ease of transportation, African countries were divided into zones leading to the freighting of Nigeria’s consignments to Equatorial Guinea.
He also said the products would be subjected to validation process after they had been picked up. “Mr President has given instructions for the airlifting of Nigeria’s allocation.
“He has also given clear instructions that it must be subjected to the standard validation process for pharmaceuticals and there will be no exceptions for this,” he stated.
The World Health Organisation had earlier warned leaders of countries on the dangers of adopting a herbal preparation without safety and efficacy clinical trial.
The apex health institution through a press release on May 4, called the attention of Madagascar government to the need for clinical trials of Madagascar’s COVID Organics, a herbal drink that is said to prevent and cure patients suffering from the novel coronavirus or COVID-19.
Matshidiso Moeti, WHO’s regional director for Africa, said: “We are advising the government of Madagascar to take this product through a clinical trial and we are prepared to collaborate with them. “We would caution and advise countries against adopting a product that has not been through clinical tests for safety and efficacy.
“We are concerned about the impact that COVID-19 will have on the ability of African countries to progress towards Universal health coverage,” she added.
Meanwhile, Nigerians have started reacting to the development on social media, with divergent opinions on it.
In a tweet by Mark with handle as @markhalistwan, he said: Madagascar currently has 186 confirmed COVID19 cases with 105 recovered and 0 deaths but Africa is still getting backlashes from the West against the Herb that is responsible for the 105 recoveries? Does Africa really need justification from the western world?
Another concerned Nigerian reacted: “Black supremacy …finally Africa we are doing it thanks to the #MadagascarCure, let’s unite as one to defeat the likes of Bill Gates and Chinese who see Africans as lab rats for their COVID tests”.@jakarabondi1
@nora bae also bared her mind thus: “Traditional medicine is our origin, we need to go back to our root.God have blessed Madagascar with the cure, let us embrace it”.
However, Nigerian herbal medicine practitioners had objected to the importation of foreign herbal preparation for the treatment of COVID-19, when there are locally produced preparations that claimed to effectively treat the infection.
The herbalists in a stakeholders meeting with the National Agency for Food and Drug, Administration and Control (NAFDAC), last week urged the agency on expedited listing and registration of their products for the treatment of patients in the pandemic.
On May 4, after five weeks of staying indoors, Nigeria joined Ghana in lifting the Coronavirus lockdown. According to the federal government, this is the first phase of easing the lockdown and the outcome of this decision will be assessed in the next two weeks.
The president cited the “heavy economic cost” of the lockdown. No doubt, the lack of activity has affected every sector of the economy with the impact worse among workers in the informal sector who depend on their daily profit to survive.
Where we got it all wrong
On the same day the president made the decision to call off the lockdown, reported cases jumped to 245. The COVID-19 pandemic has over flogged these three evident problems in the dysfunctional Nigeria health sector: inefficiency due to manual processes, fragmentation, and lack of data.
When Ghana made the decision to call off their lockdown, it was supported by an aggressive rise in testing and enhanced capacity to conduct contact tracing of infected persons. Ghana has conducted up to 100,000 tests which is four times the total number of tests done in Nigeria. It is important to know that Ghana is using drones to fly COVID-19 samples from difficult-to-reach rural areas to health facilities where they can be tested; shortening the time between getting tested and receiving your test results.
The Nigerian government has failed to look inwards. We need to focus on ourselves and come up with solutions unique to us. It is okay to admire the efforts of more efficient countries, but we have to be realistic when setting our own plans. Nigeria is a country of 200 million persons and just about 26,000 have been tested, that is 0.13 persons per 1000.
It is easy to see why Nigerian health professionals continue to argue against the decision to ease the lockdown especially in the hard-hit cities of Lagos, Ogun and Abuja. The truth is, we are not ready for this.
What can we do? First of all let’s consider what has been done: tertiary health centers have been strengthened, more laboratories have been built and old ones made even better, with the support of the private sector isolation centres have been successful set up across all the geo-political zones.
To find a solution, we have to take into consideration that we lack the skills, resources and functional systems to handle a pandemic of this situation, even the United States is struggling.
We need to be original and come up with interventions that are peculiar to us and our problems. This is time to look back and find out what we have missed. What has the government overlooked that is pinging back our progress?
One of them is that the Primary Health Centres have not been fully engaged in the fight against COVID-19. More focus has been placed on tertiary institutions and specialised laboratories, ignoring a fundamental part of the healthcare sector. Primary Healthcare Centres which function at community level are the first point of contact for the majority of Nigerians and simply cannot be overlooked, especially now that we have entered the community level spread of the coronavirus.
There’s a lot to gain if the PHCs are well-equipped including: early detection of cases, more compliance to NCDC safety guidelines as people trust their community healthcare providers. If workers in our primary facilities are actively engaged, this not only improves their competence, but make them willing champions to support the fight against the COVID-19 in their respective communities.
We have innovators in the private sector, disrupting the healthcare sector with efficient problem solving technologies. 54gene, a private organisation focused on African genomic studies has played a key role in boosting Nigeria’s daily COVID-19 testing. The private sector in Nigeria consistently displays enterprise, competence and accountability and all these qualities we require at this time. In fact, a majority of South Africa’s 200,000+ tests (highest in Africa) have been conducted in private laboratories. The government needs to engage more private organisations across different areas and levels.
Way forward Five years ago, when Bill Gates warned that we were not ready for the next outbreak, this particular scenario is what he was talking about. Getting ready for a pandemic is not a one-off issue. Epidemiologists continue to warn that we are in constant threat of emerging and re-emerging infectious disease outbreaks. What does this imply?
This implies that all the progress and innovations made in the health care sector during this period should not be abandoned as things begin to get better. All the successful collaborations, both private and non-private, should be made into widescale self-sustaining systems; the Bio-Safety-3 Labs established should not be allowed to go extinct due to poor maintenance.
We can’t keep making the same mistakes, the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed both our flaws and strengths simultaneously, let’s enforce the positives and turn around the negatives. There’s no better time than now to plan for the future.
The Lagos State Ministry of Health, LSMOH, has made a disclosure of 33 recoveries from its Onikan & Eti-Osa (LandMark) Isolation centres, making a total of 502 discharged patients in the state since the outbreak of the disease.
In the same vein, Ekiti State Government also discharged 5 Coronavirus patients on Monday, as it unveiled plans to expand its Isolation centre to a 100-bed space capacity.
Babajide-Sanwo-olu
The LSMOH further revealed some peculiarities of the patients, describing them as 9 females and 24 males, 17 from Onikan and 16 from Eti-Osa centres.
It tweeted: “#COVID19Lagos patients; 9 females & 24 males; all Nigerians have been discharged from our Isolation facilities at Onikan & Eti-Osa (LandMark) reunite with the Society.
“The patients; 17 from Onikan & 16 from Eti-Osa (LandMark) Isolation centres have fully recovered & tested negative twice consecutively to #COVID19.
“With this, the number of patients successfully managed & discharged in Lagos has risen to 502”.
Speaking on the Ekiti State update, the state Commissioner for Health and Human Services, Dr Mojisola Yahaya Kolade said, “we are discharging 5 patients today out of the 10 active cases, the discharged patients have are healthy now, they have tested negative of Coronavirus”.
She said with this development, Ekiti has 15 confirmed cases, 9 discharged,1 death, and five active cases.
N/B: Sequel to two of the contestants having same number of votes at the end of the contest, after due deliberations, the Panel has decided to extend the poll till 11:59PM on Wednesday for a winner to emerge.
Any inconveniences regretted.
The second edition of PANsite of the Year Award, an Online Poll created to recognise Pharmacy students, who have distinguished themselves in public healthcare activities as well as community/social development, has commenced.
The maiden edition, which saw Yusuf Hassan Wada, a 21-year– old Pharmacy student of Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, as winner, held in May 2019.
This second edition is another initiative to reward innovation and active participation of Pharmacy students, who have been championing advocacy in public healthcare in different forms, as well as making impactful contribution in community/social development.
Following the nomination exercise, the panel in charge of the exercise has shortlisted six (6) nominees with highest nominations for the Online Poll, and the candidate with the highest votes becomes the winner.
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