Pregnant women, children more at malaria risk – NMEP
The National Malaria Eradication Programme (NMEP), has said that more than 90 percent of Nigerians are at risk of malaria while children and pregnant women are more vulnerable.
Making this known in Lagos during the third quarter media chat with Health Writers Association of Nigeria (HEWAN), the National Coordinator of NMEP, Dr. Audu Bala Mohammed, who was represented by Dr Joel Akilah, Head of Integrated Vector Management in NMEP, said a collaboration with health writers would help to achieve the programme’s strategic plan of ensuring total elimination of malaria in Nigeria by 2020.
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He, however, said that there has been reduction of malaria prevalence according to the Malaria Indicator Survey (MIS) from 42 percent in 2010 to 27 percent in 2015.
Mohammed also said there is improvement in the uptake of Intermittent Preventive Treatment in Pregnancy (IPTp), from 13 per cent according to Nigeria Malaria Indicator Survey (NMIS), in 2010 to 19 per cent in 2015 by pregnant women who received at least two doses of Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine (SP).
However, uptake of 19 per cent SP is relatively low if Nigeria must eliminate incidences of malaria in pregnancy and its adverse effects.
According to the NMEP boss, malaria is a problem that requires a multi-pronged approach and the belief is that the media is central to solving this challenge.
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Mrs Itohowo Uko, the Head of Advocacy, Communication and Social Mobilisation in NMEP, noted that malaria in pregnancy had grave consequences, especially as it accounted for 11 per cent of maternal deaths.
“Malaria in pregnancy can occur with or without symptoms; it can cause anaemia, lead to miscarriages, still births, pre-term and low birth weight babies and in unfortunate situations, death.”
“The NMEP has a Prevention of Malaria in Pregnancy (MIP) strategy.This strategy advocates using Focused Antenatal Care (ANC), IPTp, regular and appropriate use of Long Lasting Insectide Nets (LLINs) in addition to early diagnosis and prompt treatment of malaria in pregnant women.
“It is our belief that the media need to be equipped with the right and correct information, particularly in health-related areas to be able to provide such information,” Uko said.
Dr. Tolu Arowolo, the National Professional Officer of World Health Organisation (WHO) said over 100 million mosquito insecticide treated nets has been given out in Nigeria.
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She however said early ANC booking and administering of IPTp are critical in preventing malaria during pregnancy, adding that IPTp is based on the assumption that every pregnant woman living in an area of high malaria transmission has malaria in her blood stream or placenta, whether or not she has symptoms of malaria.
“A pregnant woman is supposed to receive a minimum of three doses of SP before delivery. They should also sleep under LLINs because it is also an intervention against malaria.”
A gynaecologist and the Malaria Technical Advisor with Jhpiego Nigeria, an affiliate organisation to John Hopkins University, United States, Dr. Bartholomew Odio, urged people, especially pregnant women, to always request for testing before the treatment of malaria or fever and to always demand to know the drugs that were given to them.
Lending her voice, the President of HEWAN, Mrs Chioma Obinna, commended the NMEP for its strategic policies and activities toward the elimination of malaria in the country.
“It is important that NMEP is collaborating with the media in the fight to eliminate malaria because the media has the power to reach out to the masses.”
