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Tag: babies

  • First Lady, club welcome first babies

    Members of the Junior Chambers International (JCI) in Akure have welcomed babies born in the early hours of 2015 with the wife of the Ondo State governor, Mrs Olukemi Mimiko. The JCI members were among the first callers at the State Specialist Hospital to welcome the first baby.

    Gifts were presented to the first and second babies of the year as well as the last baby in ý2014 by Mrs Mimiko and club members.

    Presenting the babies to the governor’s wife and the JCI officials, ýthe Ondo State Commissioner of Health, Dr Dayo Adeyanju, said the first baby was delivered at exactly 12:05am on January 1 to Hamefuli family. ýWhile the 2nd baby was delivered to Ajayi family at exactly 12:45am. The last baby of 2014 was delivered by Mrs Olushile at 8:36pm on December 31.

    The JCI president, Kunle Odelusi, presented the gifts to the babies alongside Mrs Mimiko. Thanking the donors, ýthe mother of the first baby, Mrs Tayo Hamefuli,ý described her baby as a bundle of joy, saying he was lucky. She hailed the state government for providing qualitative and affordable healthcare for the people.

    Odelusi said: “It is our tradition to go out every New Year to present gifts to the first babies of the year. This is part of our resolve to make life meaningful to the average man on the street.”

     

     

  • Wanted: Help before death comes for these babies

    Wanted: Help before death comes for these babies

    At the Hearts of Gold Hospice, Surulere, Lagos Mainland, two babies lay in abject pain waiting for mercy. Corporate bodies or individuals can heal their pains. They need corrective surgeries that can make living somewhat bearable for them.

    Unless help comes quickly, the angel of death may visit at any time and end the perpetual pain in which these babies alive.

    One of the babies, christened Baby Latoya who was brought to the hospice by officials of the Lagos State government after she was picked up from the point where she was abandoned by her parents, suffers from two devastating defects-Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus. While the first is a condition in which a baby is in the womb and the spinal column does not close all of the way causing a variety of mental and social problems which would make the life of any child with the defect incomplete. Hydrocephalus on the other hand is derived from the Greek words “hydro” meaning water and “cephalus” meaning head. It  is a condition in which the primary characteristic is excessive accumulation of fluid in the brain. Although hydrocephalus was once known as “water on the brain,” the “water” is actually cerebrospinalfluid (CSF) — a clear fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. The excessive accumulation of CSF results in an abnormal widening of spaces in the brain called ventricles. This widening creates potentially harmful pressure on the tissues of the brain.  The most common indication of hydrocephalus in infants is often a rapid increase in head circumferenceor an unusually large head size. And children with the condition suffer a variety of conditions including vomiting, sleepiness, irritability, downward deviation of the eyes, and seizures.A visit to the Hospice would leave even the stone hearted sober for a number of hours. During our visit to the home last week, a lady cried without control until she was escorted out of the home by one of her colleagues. It is a place where you are reminded of the everyday privileges that we take for granted.

    Like the duo, children at the Hearts of Gold Hospice generally suffer from a wide range of congenital defects, some of which may be correctable through surgical interventions while others are terminal. Some other conditions which children in the home suffer from include congenital heart deformities. These defects leave most of these children in conditions which make them bed ridden for life and incapable of participating in mixing with members of the society, a reason for which a lot of parents terminate the lives of these children or abandon them in places where they are either picked up or left to die over a period of time.

    The Hearts of Gold Hospice was, in response to the pathetic way in which children with these physical and mental deformities are treated in October 2013. According to the Founder and Proprietor of the facility, which has 63 severely physically and mentally challenged children, Mrs Laja Adedoyin: “We opened our house on October 2, 2003 in response to the steadily increasing number of abandoned, orphaned and sick children suffering from a vast range of congenital abnormalities. The hospice offers free 24 hours, 7 days a week and 365 days a year, service for children with terminal or life threatening illnesses, offering a comfortable, caring and loving environment for them to live for the short period that they may have with us in the world. We provide respite support, palliative care, comfort and pain management even as we seek for assistance towards securing corrective surgeries for those children whose conditions give them a chance to live”

    Explaining that the hospice has children from every part of the country, Mrs Adedoyin noted that a lot of parents abandon their children with birth defect because there is no support system. In her words:

    “Parents of some of my children are usually not economically strong and have no idea where to go for help. These children are kept in obscure places, away from the society because of the stigma attached to having these class of children. They are often abused and rejected by their blood families. Some fathers would give the mothers ultimatum, chased out of her matrimonial home and faces rejection by in-laws.”

    Further showing concern for the plight of parents who have children with congenital defect, Mrs Adedoyin noted that: “ for majority of my children, surgical intervention is required to give them a new and near normal life and so when parents cannot afford this, they resort to all sorts of methods which is mostly not in the interest of the children. She therefore counselled parents  to parents, especially mothers is to hold on and seek help through the respective government institution insisting that there is always a measure of help that this governmental organisation can provide even if it is just to link them up with the right home to go to. Mrs Adedoyin who said that she is very fulfilled with what she is doing explained that the major challenge that her home has is getting the needed assistance and sponsorship for timely surgeries for the children. She noted that the lack of help sometimes jeopardises the lives of the children and expresses the hope that more Nigerians would come forward and lend a helping hand to secure the survival of more of the children in the home.

    She thanked the Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fasola for the unquantifiable assistance that the home has received from him as well as corporate bodies and individuals who have continued to take care of my children, my prayer is that God almighty will take care of them too.”

     

  • ‘IVF babies are now accepted by society’

    A senior consultant at Medical Art Centre (MART), Dr Kemi Ailoje Adewusi, has said Nigerians no longer treat In-vitro Fertilisation (IVF)  babies as outcast.

    Dr  Adewusi spoke at a  ceremony organised by the centre to celebrate her and her colleague, Dr Chizara Okeke.

    They were awarded with Masters in Reproductive Medicine from University of South Wales, Australia and  promoted to consultant positions in the centre (MART).

    Dr Adewusi said:  “I think the acceptability and integration of children conceived by IVF is a lot better now from when we first started. The awareness is there now because before, there were a lot of myths associated with the procedure. People thought if you do IVF, there are structural or anatomical issues with you and they don’t see the need for an advanced form of medicine, which makes it difficult for them to access anything that is new. People thought that IVF babies were like robots or dummies and they believed it wasn’t possible to do things that you can do inside of the body, outside of it as well to achieve the same result. But as the year went by, people got pregnant, babies went to schools as intelligent and they look normal; played normally and talked normally and so, the acceptance became better.”

    She added that people can say now ‘this baby is an IVF baby…’ For instance, when we went for a conference, we met the first IVF baby from Australia who happens to be an Embryologist himself and this means that they also have longevity and they don’t have all the things that people think is related to the procedure.

    “The acceptance by the society is a lot better now and the awareness has grown much bigger than what it used to be,” she said.

    Chizara said  it was a huge privilege for them to work in that field of medicine, noting that, “for someone, such as Prof Ashiru to have the trust in you and reveal what happens in the room, which is supposed to be kept there as a guided art was a great privilege anyone can ask for.”

    She noted that it is a field which they have been operating on and as such, will not feel any pressure in their new positions.

    The Chief Medical Director, MART Centre, Prof. Oladapo Ashiru however congratulated the duo on their success and their fast learning of the practice within a short  time, noting that it is their show of excellence that earned them the elevation.

    Ashiru said Chizara joined Medical ART Centre of the MART Group of Health Services seven years ago. She came in as a novice in the field of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART), but within a period of two years she had been introduced to this field, she started learning and started demonstrating her skills. And this was  crowned by her registering for a programme in University of New South Wales, Australia and over a  three years, she ended up getting masters in Reproductive Medicine which is the specific training for doctors who are practicing In-Vitro Fertilisation or ART.

    “We did evaluation of her work here where she can do all the whole areas of IVF from Ovarian Stimulation to Embryo Transfer and as such, she becomes an accomplished endocrinologist. And the management considered her to have merited the position of a consultant and have been so elevated.”

  • ‘Now, babies can be spared of HIV’

    ‘Now, babies can be spared of HIV’

    It is possible to eliminate mother to child transmission of HIV in our lifetime, reports OYEYEMI GBENGA-MUSTAPHA

    It was as much for mother and child as it was for the entire humanity. The venue was the International Conference Centre (ICC), Abuja. The event was organised to prevent the needless transmission of HIV to children. It was basically to show government’s commitment to the elimination of HIV from mother to child, and to tell Nigerians that effective interventions can be introduced to achieve that.

    It was termed the Presidential Launch of the Elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV (eMTCT) Plan 2015 to 2016. The event featured a roll call of who is who. The President, Goodluck Jonathan was represented by the Vice President Mohammed Namadi.  Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim, Minister of Women Affairs, Hajiya Zainab Maina; Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health, Linus N. Awute, and Executive Director, National Primary Health Care Development Agency, (NPHCDA), Dr Ado Muhammad, were all there.

    Representatives of traders, religious leaders and many organisations of people living with HIV/AIDS were part of history to end Mother to child transmission of HIV, which is characterised by infection of an infant with HIV during pregnancy, birth or when breastfeeding.

    According to World Health Organisation (WHO), up to 90 per cent of all infants and children with HIV are infected through vertical transmission. In the absence of any interventions to prevent the transmission, between 15 to 45 per cent of infants will be infected with the virus, and currently more than half of these infants who do not receive treatment die before their second birthday. Scaling up an effective elimination of mother to child transmission, or EMTCT, approach globally can reduce rates of transmission to less than five per cent annually, and avert more than one million new HIV infections among children by 2015, while at the same time improving overall maternal and family health.

    Taking this cue, the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) worked out a two-year plan on how Nigeria can achieve the eMTCT goal.

    According to the Director General NACA, Prof John Idoko, global focus has shifted from the prevention of mother to child transmission, to elimination. Activities are now centered on eliminating all new infections of HIV transmitted from mother to child by 2015. ‘To achieve this objective, eMTCT activities focus on specifically strengthening activities to prevent HIV infection among women and their partners, and to expand efforts to reach men and to reduce the stigma of the disease in both rural and urban communities. It is also important to ensure access to anti-retroviral (ARV) treatments for every HIV-infected woman and her partner. EMTCT activities will also strengthen linkages that support safer motherhood and reduction of unintended pregnancies among women living with HIV/AIDS. Finally, EMTCT activities will continue to test ways to expand antenatal and post-natal care services, referrals and ways to maximize each contact with clients, and expand capacity-building efforts to enhance the quality of service delivery,” he explained.

    The President said his government took active interest in the eMTCT because it desired that no Nigerian child should be born with HIV nor live with HIV acquired from its mother, for the 2010 National Sentinel Survey for pregnant women attending antenatal care in Nigeria recorded a HIV prevalence of 4.1 per cent, while the population survey carried out in 2012 observed an HIV prevalence of 3.4 per cent. “Nigeria records an estimated six million births annually and out of this number, a huge percentage of deliveries are outside health facility settings. The unfortunate implication of this is the high birth of HIV positive babies in Nigeria, which according to the United Nations, accounts for over 25 percent of the global burden of HIV positive births. Without treatment, 20 per cent of these children will die before their first birthday and 80 per cent will not live to see their fifth birthday.

    “This is unacceptable to the government of Nigeria which recognises that the lives of all mothers and their babies can be saved through a combination of HIV testing and counseling; access to effective antiretroviral prophylaxis and treatment; safer delivery practices; family planning; and safe breast feeding practices,” stated the President.

    Recalling previous efforts, the President who spoke through his vice said: “In June 2011, the Government of Nigeria with other world leaders launched the ‘Global Plan towards the Elimination of New HIV Infections among Children by 2015 and Keeping Their Mothers Alive.’ This plan aims to reduce the number of new infections among children by 90 per cent and to reduce AIDS-related maternal deaths by 50 percent. Following this and other resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the Government of Nigeria hosted the Abuja+12 Special Summit of African Union Heads of States and Government on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria which resolved to implement a Post-2015 strategy to accelerate the eradication of HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria in Africa by 2030.

    “As part of the overall commitment of the Government of Nigeria to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic, I launched the President’s Comprehensive Response Plan for HIV/AIDS and Other Related Infections (PCRP) in 2013. The Government of Nigeria has since recognised that the elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV (eMTCT) is intricately linked with and directly contributes to the achievement of Millennium Development Goals that have to do with gender equality, reduction of child mortality, improvements of maternal health, and combating HIV/AIDS.”

    He said since 2011, the Nigerian Government through the collaborative and supportive efforts of her International Partners has achieved significant progress towards the elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV.

    President Jonathan said the number of HIV counseling and testing sites increased from 1,357 in 2011 to 7,075 in 2013. During the last three years a cumulative total of 8,202,124 people have been tested for HIV and know their status. The number of PMTCT sites increased from 959 in 2011 to 5,622 in 2013, while the number of pregnant women counseled and tested for HIV and received their results increased from 900, 000 in 2010 to 1.7 million in 2013. The PMTCT program coverage increased to 30 percent in 2013 resulting in a 20 per cent decline in new HIV infections among children. “In addition to these, the Federal Government through the Subsidy Re-investment Program (SURE-P) and other programmes has initiated health systems strengthening projects that are critical to achieving the elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV in various communities.

    Despite the genuine and commendable progress made in combating HIV/AIDS, Nigeria is faced with several gaps because of her huge population. There are huge coverage and access gaps in Prevention of Mother to Child transmission of HIV.

    Only about 61 per cent of pregnant women attended antenatal care in 2013 and only 36 per cent delivered in health facilities. Government is aware that support from international partners has flattened in the last three years and government has been informed by some International Partners of a gradual withdraw of funding support for some aspects of HIV services in the country.

    The President said in response to these challenges, the will continue to provide the needed level of commitment to ensure progress in combating HIV. “To this end, the Government of Nigeria is committed to the implementation of the plan to eliminate of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV by 2016. The Government wishes to inform Nigerians that it has begun the release of fund for the implementation of the Presidents Comprehensive Response Plan for HIV/AIDS (PCRP).  Government recognises that a huge amount of resources would be required to effectively combat the HIV epidemic which poses significant threats to the Transformation Agenda and Vision 20/20/20. I therefore call on Government at all levels, the Private sector and civil society organisations to support Government in sustaining a robust response to HIV in Nigeria.”

    He used the opportunity to profoundly thank International Partners who have stood by the country all these years and continue to be a formidable ally in the quest to eliminate Mother to Child Transmission of HIV.

    “The Government of Nigeria is particularly grateful to the United States Government PEPFAR program, the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development, the Global Fund, the European Union, the World Health Organisation (WHO), and the United Nations System to mention a few. I appeal to our International Partners to be patient with the Government of Nigeria as it strives to provide more resources to the many challenges confronting the nation. No Nigerian child should be born with HIV. Together we shall end the AIDS epidemic among children,” stated the President.

    Giving further insight into the reasons for government’s commitment to eMTCT, Senator Anyim said: “HIV in Africa is deepening its hold on our vulnerable population. The effect of HIV on women, young people and babies born HIV positive has turned up unacceptable figures especially in sub-Saharan Africa. It is indeed clear that the fight against HIV would hasten the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and sustainable development.  One of the most devastating consequences of the HIV epidemic is the Transmission of HIV from Mother to Child (MTCT). This route of transmission accounts for a significant percentage of the HIV burden globally. The potential impact of Mother to Child Transmission on the achievement of the MDGs is becoming increasingly clearer. HIV has been recognised as a major contributor to the persistently high Maternal Mortality in Nigeria.”

    Senator Pius said: “Nigeria contributes about 25 percent of the global burden of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV. The elimination of Mother to Child Transmission is therefore a priority health issue in Nigeria. Some of the challenges being addressed are access to quality and comprehensive Reproductive Health services and low uptake of antenatal services especially in rural areas. This has become very important due to the fact that a 61 percent of women access antenatal care but majority of these women deliver outside medical supervision or by Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs). There are still gaps in integrating Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) services into existing reproductive health programs at various service delivery points. All these have necessitated the need to accelerate the elimination of Mother to Child Transmission in Nigeria, hence, the launch of the elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV Plan 2015-2016.”

    He reassured that the government is fully committed to accelerate the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals as part of the overall Transformation Agenda. “The robust management of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) which received commendation from the International Community is a further demonstration of Mr. President’s commitment to the wellbeing of Nigerians. The President’s Comprehensive Response Plan for HIV/AIDS (PCRP) which was launched by Mr. President in 2013 is currently being implemented. I assure you all that the Government of Nigeria will fully support the implementation of the elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV (eMTCT) Plan 2015 to 2016,” said Senator Anyim.

    There and then, the Elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV (eMTCT) Plan 2015 to 2016 was launched..

  • Three babies rescued as police smash baby factory

    The Anambra State Police Command at the weekend smashed a baby factory in Odekpe, Ogbaru Local Government Area.

    The police said they rescued three babies from the “factory”.

    Also, a woman, simply identified as “nurse”, was arrested.

    The police uncovered the place when a girl, according to a source, was delivered of a baby boy. But the child was allegedly sold off.

    The mother was said to have raised the alarm.

    The source said security operatives recovered the baby later from the owner of the home and handed it over to the mother.

    Police spokesman Uchenna Eze confirmed the incident to reporters yesterday in Awka, the state capital.

    He said the operation was handled by the state’s joint task force, comprising the military, the police and men of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

    But the police could not confirm a similar incident in Nnewi, where a cache of arms was reportedly discovered at an erosion site.

    Eze said the arms discovery had not been reported the command.

    Our reporter learnt yesterday that the operation took the security operatives to a bush in Nnewi, where a suspect, simply identified as Ogbonna was arrested.

    The suspect reportedly had a polythene bag containing Indian hemp.

    It was also learnt that the same security operatives stormed an uncompleted estate at Uruagu Nnewi allegedly owned by suspected businessman living overseas.

    Items recovered arms included an AK-47 rifle, a military rifle, handcuffs, 1,500 live ammunition and 30 fully loaded magazines.

  • Positioning brands for new moms, babies

    Positioning brands for new moms, babies

    Managers of baby care products and other household items find it difficult to market their goods to  moms and their babies.

    Although experts advise that brand mangers should have a marketing plan and strategy to reach their market segment to sustain brand equity, there is the problem of who to target first – the new moms or the babies.

    Brand managers who can influence consumer behaviours with an effective campaign that attracts the new moms, the decision-maker for products used by her family, hardly have issues.

    A new mom in marketing is seen as someone who wants only the best for her baby, but may not know what “the best” looks like. While brand managers have predictable media options, such as TV and magazine advertisements, in-store shopping experiences, and her trusted group of friends and family to rly on, there are fears that once a woman consumer becomes a new mother, her preference for particular brand shifts. “No longer is it about herself and luxury items; instead, the focus is on her new baby and growing family,” said a brand analyst.

    However, when moms are satisfied with the brand they desire, brand managers run into the trouble of sustaining their preference for the brands against close substitutes. Hence, the need to create experience for the babies to make the brand last long becomes the next race becomes inevitable as a result of growing competition.

    According to AdWeek, a global advertising and marketing magazine, high end brands, such as Versace, Fendi, and Marc Jacobs, have introduced clothing lines for toddlers, and they aren’t just hoping to attract parents who can afford to laugh it off when their child dribbles pureed carrots down the front of a $900 sweater but the reports that beyond designing such products for the infants, the brands have seen it as an effective way to sustaining preference for the product with the hope that 30 years later, they’ll buy their kid a new designer collection every three months.

    A former marketing consultant for companies such as Hasbro, Mattel, and Nestlé Dan Acuff, explains: “Brands are going younger and younger all the time. Babies don’t distinguish between reality and fantasy, so they think, ‘let’s get them while they’re susceptible.’”

    To ensure that both new mothers and babies remain bonded with the brands from generation to generation however, some brands are designing a touch-point where both new mothers and babies will experience their brands.

    Pears Baby Range, introduced to the market in 1971 by Unilever Nigeria, has continued to sustain its brand equity through various positioning efforts to make the brand remain a generational brand. Last December, the brand handler started Pears Baby of the Year Promo.

    The aim of the promo is to excite new mothers who, perhaps, grew up using the brand and also creating an experience the babies will cherish in future when they see the memorabilia.

    At the grand finale, a baby, Miss Somekene Chukwuka, was crowned Pears Baby of the Year  while Master David Kelechukwu Ezeocha was named the first runner up and Miss Alice Esosa Aghedo the second runner up.

    The emergence of these kids came after their mothers helped their babies to upload their best pictures on facebook, mobile sites and, in some instances, dropped at designated locations. Those who didn’t reach the final won instant prizes and weekly prizes, such as Pears Hamper. The first winner received a cash prize of N1million; first runner up  N500,000 cash prize, and the second runner up walked away with  N250,000 cash prize. All the three babies will also be given a year’s supply of the pears baby range of products.

    According to experts, the event will remain evergreen for winners. The Brand Building Director, Home and Personal Care, Unilever Nigeria, Mr David Okeme, said there were positive disposition by category consumers, especially mothers, towards the brand.

    The Category Manager, Skin Care, Unilever Nigeria, James Inglesby, said Pears brand has a great heritage in Nigeria, and will rejuvenate the brand for new mothers.

    The mothers of the top three winners also expressed their gratitude to Unilever for giving their children the opportunity at such a tender age, saying they will never forget this experience.

  • Day old babies dumped in Minna

    Two babies suspected to be day old each were found dumped in suburbs of Minna, the capital city of Niger State within the last four days.

    The first was dumped at refuse dump site in Maitumbi area of the city while another baby boy was yesterday dumped under bridge in Rafin- Yasain in Bosso a suburb of the state Capital.

    It was gathered that the latest baby was dumped under a bridge linking the area with Maikunkele after the Western Bye pass Junction.

    Eye witness who spoke in confidence said the baby might have been dumped alive but later gave up as the body was discovered by a passer yesterday morning.

    “We strongly suspect that the baby must have been dumped Sunday night and he might have died over night because the place it was dumped was far from the village that the cry of the baby could be heard,” the witness disclosed.

    Confirming the development,Niger state Police command’s spokesman Richard Adamu Oguche said the police received the report early in the morning and drafted men to evacuate the body.

    He Police are investigating the trend as he lamented that two babies were dumped within the state capital . Minna less than a week.

    According to him ” we are investigating , no arrest has been made , we took the baby dead body to hospital for medical examination before handing over it to the men of the Niger state environmental protection for Burial, we are still awaiting the result of the medical examinations”

  • Diapered babies in class (2)

    Diapered babies in class (2)

    IN response to last week’s column, Diapered babies in class, a reader sent the following text message:

    I love ‘Diapered babies in class.’ My son started school last month, a few weeks shy of his second birthday. He arrived from school yesterday and said: “My aunty hit me on the head saying, ‘learn to be serious, learn to be serious.’” The mother was furious but I restrained her from taking it up. Is it okay? from 08085692—.

    When I read the text message, I was really surprised by the teacher’s reaction. I was also filled with indignation when I thought of my toddler being treated the same way by a teacher. However, before responding, I decided to share the story with colleagues and other mothers to determine the kind of counsel I should give the reader.

    I only told him in a short reply that he and his wife should take it up with the school authorities. Many of my colleagues agreed too. At age two, a child still has very short attention span and cannot be expected to sit still and concentrate on a task for too long. Ordinarily, such a child should not even be in school yet; he should still be free to roam around and play, with no teacher forcing him to learn. So, my verdict is that the school should be notified of the teacher’s behaviour because there is no excuse for it.

    However, someone pointed out something worth noting: What class is the child in question? Is he in the appropriate class for his age, which would mean the playgroup, or is he in a class for older children where they are required to spend a little more time focused on learning concepts? While she noted that being in a higher class is no excuse for a teacher to hit a young child, yet, as long as a younger child in that class, the teacher may be constrained to treat him like others.

    If the boy is in a class for older children, how did he get in? Many schools complain that parents insist that their wards be enrolled in a particular class, irrespective of whether the pupil is ready for that class or not. But that is also what differentiates schools from one another. Some schools insist on doing what they know is right as professionals and gently but firmly tell parents to abide by their policies or take their wards elsewhere. Other schools, because of their desire to keep their pupils and attract more at all cost, allow standards to slide. Rather than tell parents to check elsewhere, they bow to pressure, which is not always good.

    One of my friends, with whom I shared this story, said she went to her son’s secondary school to complain to the principal that he was not copying his notes. The principal asked her the boy’s age. She told him he is a year younger than the stipulated age for his class. Then he replied, “he is still a child; he is just acting his age.” He also told her that he was forced to drive away a couple who wanted him to enrol their eight-year old into JSS1. But he sadly acknowledged that another school would accept that child.

    Like I noted last week, parents get worried when they think other children are ahead of their wards. My friend told me of one, who complained to a school owner that all her child, a nursery pupil, could write was the letter one (a stroke down), while his peers in other schools could count from one to 100. But as far as the school owner knew, a stroke down is what that child needs to know at that stage.

    Parents need to be careful about making comparisons because a child who appears to know so much so early may not be so smart but be learning by rote. Such child may not understand the underlying concepts behind so many things he can recall from memory.

    It may help for schools to organise orientation programmes for parents of their pupils to familiarise them with the curriculum in use and the methods employed in teaching various concepts. That way, even the parents will know how to help their wards learn at home.

  • ‘We expected only one baby but got four’

    ‘We expected only one baby but got four’

    They were expecting a baby and that should be no problem — by their calculations.

    Mr Kehinde Tijani and his wife, Grace, who were blessed with quadruplets on October 1 at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), are troubled. They do not know how to stop their bundles of joy from turning into source of dispair.

    The family is in dire straits because they fear they won’t be able to nurture their bundles of joy.

    Tijani, a Lagos driver earning N35,000 monthly, said: “We thought the pregnancy would produce a baby, unknown to us that they would be four, in addition to the three we already have.”

    The 44-year-old, who hails from Akitan in Oyo State, told The Nation that his family lives in a one-room apartment at Ajangbadi, on the outskirts of Lagos.

    His wife, who is still at the maternity ward of LUTH, said: “When I first learnt that I was carrying four babies, I became sad but my husband said we can’t question God.”

    She said people thought she had an In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) – artificial insemination, adding: “I didn’t even know what IVF was until I got to the hospital. It was God who made it happen. I conceived like the normal ones I had in the past. I never thought I had more than one baby. In fact, when I had a scan at Ajangbadi (a Lagos suburb), doctors said I had fibroid. This was before the doctor said I had five babies; one was aborted. This scared me, but my husband was supportive.”

    Grace, 37, who hails from Delta State, recounting her pregnancy experience, said: “I also suffered from anaemia, dizziness and sleeplessness, especially at night. It was tough keeping the pregnancy, especially with the chest pain, heavy breathing and loss of appetite that I had to contend with. This was why my husband brought me to LUTH . I was admitted in July and I have been here for three and a half months.”

    The Tijanis said they named the babies—one boy, three girls— AbdulGaniyu Akanni, Alimotu Aduke, Bilkisu Abike and Latifat Abebi.

    “We can’t celebrate their birth properly because we are yet to pay the hospital bill,” the mother added.

    The parents, who live at 22, Dabatapa Street, Ajangbadi Jakande, Badagry, Lagos, are pleading with well-meaning people, companies and governments to support them to be able to nurse their babies.

  • Why babies should not make babies, by experts

    Why babies should not make babies, by experts

    Determining the right age for a girl to marry is a topic that generates heat. It recently did at the National Assembly. Experts believe that girls, who marry before their early 20s, are five times likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth, or suffer from Vesico Vaginal Fistula (VVF), low birth weight and Utero-Vaginal Fistula (UVF), write OYEYEMI GBENGA-MUSTAPHA and WALE ADEPOJU

    In her life, nothing, perhaps, had been more shocking. She was not the only one stunned. Many who witnessed the discovery at the same time with her were also shocked. They all kept wondering how a woman could live for over 60 years with Vesico Vaginal Fistula (VVF) . Wife of Adamawa State Governor Dr Halima Nyako said she was alarmed by her discovery. Mrs. Nyako said: “It is unfortunate to find an aged woman living with VVF for the past 60-years in the state and the development is quite alarming.”

    She said records from the Ministry of Health shows that VVF infection is on the increase. Mrs. Nyako said the records also indicated that about 218 women in the state were infected with the disease last year.

    “Following the alarming infection rate of the disease, very soon the state government will establish VVF treatment centre in the state, ’’ she said.

    Commissioner for Health Mrs Lilian Ishaku said the government was concerned about the high rate of VVF infection.

    The Adamawa situation is just a fraction of the between 15,000 and 20,000 new cases of VVF , which the country records yearly, according to consultant surgeon, Dr Kess Valdek, at Gambo Sawaba General Hospital in Zaria, Kaduna State.

    Programme Manager, USAID Fistula Care Project in Nigeria Chief Iyeme Efem said more than 200,000 women in Nigeria are suffering from VVF.

    The VVF patients, according to Efem, represent about 40 per cent of cases of the scourge in the world.

    He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Calabar, the Cross River State capital that the disturbing magnitude of VVF prevalence in the country made the Federal Government order care for 66,000 patients in 2013.

    “The prevalence of the scourge in Nigeria is worrisome and President Goodluck Jonathan has ordered that 66,000 persons living with VVF conditions should be given free repair surgery in 2013,’’ he said.

    Efem said a National Strategic Framework for the Elimination of Obstetric Fistula in Nigeria, covering 2011 to 2015 was currently in place, adding, however, that the President’s target might not be attained in 2013.

    He attributed his fear to lack of funds, saying that due to inadequate funding, USAID was only able to carry out repair surgeries on not more than 8, 000 patients in its centres across the country in 2012.

    “Federal Government’s budgetary provision for the care of VVF patients in 2011 and 2012 were N300 million and N250 million, respectively; but the money was not released and no one could account for it,’’ he said.

    He said the cost of repair surgery on a VVF patient was 250 dollars (about N39,000), adding that an additional N50,000 was required for the rehabilitation of the patient after surgery.

    He urged the relevant authorities to release all approved funds for the handling of the scourge.

    “It took us a lot of time and energy to convince the Federal Ministry of Health to provide and pursue budget for VVF treatment in the country.’’

    The USAID programme manager said dearth of professionals in the field was another drawback to meeting the target.

    “In Nigeria, we are still in dire need of trained medical personnel on VVF. Only a few Nigerian doctors and nurses have ventured into the treatment of VVF and this will affect the government’s programme in that area, this year.

    “Repairing VVF is time-consuming because the disease is often complicated. It means that only few sufferers can have their cases repaired in two weeks or a month, if the patient is not to suffer a relapse.’’

    One of the causes of VVF is early sexual intercourse, usually experienced by under-aged brides. The President, Paediatric Association of Nigeria (PAN), Prof Adebiyi Olowu, described early marriage as an abuse of the right of the child.

    Olowu said: “The medical consequences of girl-child marriage, which includes development of Vesico-Vaginal Fistula (VVF) and Utero-Vaginal Fistula (UVF), low birth weight baby delivery, birth asphyxia among others should strongly be a deterrent to this act that is universally condemnable. The United Nations and several other conventions to which Nigeria is a signatory affirms 18 years as the age of maturity. It is no surprise that the age of 18 years is also the age that adulthood begins and the age at which an individual is allowed to vote and permitted to drive and own bank account among others.”

    The association’s National Secretary, Dr Jerome Elusiyan said: “PAN expresses shock over this development and calls for the immediate reinstatement of the clause. The attention of the Paediatric Association of Nigeria (PAN) has been drawn to the clause in the new constitution proposal to the effect that the age of marriage which has been traditionally put at 18 years has been removed. It is totally wrong in all ramifications. Our association rejects that amendment to age.”

    Adjunct Professor of the University of Illinois at Chicago and Chief Medical Director, Medical Art Centre, Ikeja, Prof Oladapo Ashiru, said victims of early marriage risk damaging their uterus.

    He said: “The next issue has to do with the process of delivering the baby. There is a very high proportion of damage to the uterus and the vaginal as a result of the head of the baby compressing these structures while coming out because of the narrow under developed passage. This can result in a communication between the womb passage and the bladder called the Vesico-Vaginal Fistula and Utero-Vaginal Fistula as well as several other complications.”

    Ashiru said: “Globally, according to UNICEF, 36 per cent of women aged 20 to 24 were married or in a union, forced or consensual, before they had reached 18. Girls, who marry between the ages of 10 and 14, are five times as likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth as women in their early 20s. And an estimated 14 million girls between the ages of 15 and 19 give birth each year. They are twice more likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth than women in their 20s.

    “The facts also show that these children are denied any form of self-reliance. They are exposed to poor nutrition and inadequate health care. Even when the husband is wealthy, the stigma of marring a young child does not enable him to get good hospital for the young child thereby making use of traditional herbalist. Taken together one would suggest that on health grounds, early marriage is a very major problem and this is the view of the global population.”

    Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist Dr Lateef Akinola also shared a similar view. He said: “The implications of the girl-child marriage are many. Girls married off early soon after menarche about age 9 to 11 years are deprived of education.

    “They will go into forced marriages and child bearing at this tender early age with lack of education. With poor earning power they will be dependent on their spouse or families. They are poor and thus faced with poor nutrition, serious health risks, and curtailed access to healthcare such as antenatal care in pregnancy. Lack of education and decent employment further brings little or no income to them and family.

    “And when pregnant, often they are unaware of the physiological consequences of pregnancy and what care needed and how to access such care. If they live far away from town or hospitals with little or no money or easy access to transport, they therefore end up having little or no antenatal care. Some of them will eventually be delivered by traditional birth attendants (TBA) in their rural or local communities, who lack good knowledge of care of women in labour and cannot carry out needed obstetric interventions like assisted vaginal births or emergency caesarean section (CS) when necessary. These young girls are thus prone to having prolonged labour lasting several days with resultant obstetric fistula involving holes connecting the vagina, the urinary bladder or the rectum; and their consequences.”

    The consultant added that sexual intercourse by an underage has other implications: “The consequences are physical, social and economic. Physical health consequences leakage of urine, faeces, tissue infection, bad smelly vaginal discharge and odour around them. Severe debilitating pelvic and or systematic infections occurs frequently as result of this. They are most times confined to their houses consequently and wearing permanent sanitary towels. Those without money to buy the towels leak urine and faeces wherever they go, going about with the stench of urine and faeces. They are thus despised by family, husbands and friends. They live in isolation with its psychological effects.

    “Eventually they become outcast from society and live a reclusive lives. The risks here are early deaths from disease, attempted suicide and suicide and malnutrition. Thus a wasted live and opportunity.”

    On best way to prevent these sad turn of events of girl-child marriage, Dr Akinola said: “Societal awareness of the sad implications of short or long term consequences of forced girl/child marriage should be highlighted. There should be free access to compulsory education at such early age. Health education should be taught. Treatment should be free for those already affected, with proper physical therapy and socioeconomic support, that is pre and post treatment.

    “Support groups and VVF health champions to form the bastion of needed pillar of support for those already afflicted. There should be laws to discourage and ban girl-child marriage and such forced practices.”

    Another Consultant Obstetrics and Gynaecologist, Dr Ayodeji Oluwole, said early sexual intercourse for an under-aged could lead to Vesico Vaginal Fistula (VVF) or Recto Vaginal Fistula (RVF).

    “Vesico Vaginal Fistula (VVF) or Recto Vaginal Fistula (RVF) is caused by ‘unrelieved’ obstructed labour. It is common in the North and Southsouth of the country. VVF results from the breakdown in the tissue between the vaginal wall and the bladder or rectum caused by unrelieved obstructed labour. It can be prevented by allowing expectant mothers have a caesarian section (C and S) than having their babies through normal deliveries.”

    But, Dr Halliru Idris, a VVF surgeon in Katsina State, said early marriage does not cause VVF once the woman attends ante-natal care.

    Idris said: “Early marriage does not cause VVF, provided that a pregnant woman attends ante-natal care. Majority of women don’t go for anti-natal care.

    “There is need for women to attend ante-natal care as part of the measures to prevent VVF and reduce the maternal and child mortality.

    “It is often caused by childbirth (in which case it is known as an obstetric fistula), when a prolonged labour presses the unborn child tightly against the pelvis, cutting off blood flow to the vesicovaginal wall.”