Treat 6000children with malaria in Zambulkura area

REPORT ON TREAT 6000 CHILDREN WITH MALARIA IN ZAMBULKURA AREA (53920) - JUNE 2024


This is another opportunity for Rescue and Restore Hope Zambulkura Ghana to update our donors and GlobalGiving Team on the activities we carried out to address the issue of malaria in Zambulkura and its neighbouring communities in the Northeast Region of Ghana in West Africa. Malaria continues to be one of the top ten diseases responsible for hospital attendance and deaths particularly in the Northern part of the country. The lack of access to primary healthcare facility in Zambulkura to provide easily accessible primary healthcare services is causing sufferings and deaths of children, pregnant women, and the aged. Donations received from donors through GG played a crucial role in enabling our NGO to buy rapid malaria test kits, malaria medicines, cough syrup, de-wormers, multivitamins among other logisticts to carry out Malaria screenings and treatment in the Zambulkura and surrounding communities. The medicines and all necessary logistics were procured in Accra and taken to the project site in Zambulkura  for the program. A team of five medical professionals from Nalerigu Baptist hospital supported the outreach program including a Physician Assistant, 2 Nurses, and 2 medical Laboratory Technicians. As we usually do, before our medical team travelled to Zambulkura for the exercise we had sent them a week’s notice informing them of our team’s coming for the malaria testing and treatment exercise in the communities. The program was scheduled for 26^th April 2024. Since we have no vehicle our team of health professionals travelled from Nalerigu to the program site in Zambulkura on a hired tricycle for the outreach program. At the end of the exercise, we screened a total of 638 children out of which 189(29.62%) tested positive for the disease.

Of the total number of children screened 237 (37.15.%) were children between 0-5 years. Children aged 6-17 years were 401 (62.85%).
Among the test results of 237 children aged 0-5years, 41 (21.69%) tested positive for malaria. Out of the children aged 6-17years who were screened,148 (78.31%) children tested positive for malaria. Though several children were suffering from malaria there were no severe malaria cases as such all the positive malaria cases were treated at the field.  Pregnant women and some of the aged who attended our program had their Blod Pressures checked and advised to go to Nalerigu hospital for BP medications. Though our team advised them to be going to Nalerigu Baptist Hospital to be put on regular BP medication due to the long distance they are likely not to go. From the test results presented above children of the school going age group 6- 17 years had the highest number of positive malaria cases of 148 (78.31%). The high number of school children suffering from malaria has a negative impact on school attendance as many children absent from school because of sickness.

Our gratitude goes to our noble donors and awesome GlobalGiving Team members. We are able to achieve this because of your support of funds to RRHZ that enable us to procure needed logistics for our programs to save the lives of the children. The people of Zambulkura, the surrounding communities and Rescue and Restore Hope Zambulkura Ghana remain grateful to you.

CONCLUSION

 The Government of Ghana is making effort to achieve the Universal Health Coverage by 2030, however Government alone cannot achieve it but needs NGOs involvement as such our NGO, Rescue and Restore Hope is making effort to contribute towards the achievement of the UHC. This calls for more NGOs to get involve in reaching out to contribute in making primary healthcare accessible to deprived rural communities.  We still aim at constructing a primary healthcare facility in Zambulkura to provide a 24-hour healthcare services to serve as a permanent solution. It is our hope to mobilize sufficient funds to complete the construction of the primary health facility we have started to construct in Zambulkura to make healthcare easily accessible to the people.

Thank you GlobalGiving Team and to all our amazing donors.

 By Maxwell Koligu Tidow - Founder, Rescue and Restore Hope Zambulkura Ghana

Links:

• website

REPORT ON TREAT 6000 CHILDREN WITH MALARIA IN ZAMBULKURA AREA (53920) - FEBRUARY 2024

Once again, this is an opportunity for Rescue and Restore Hope Zambulkura Ghana to update our donors and GlobalGiving on the activities we took to address the issue of malaria in Zambulkura and it’s neighbouring communities in the Northeast Region of Ghana in West Africa. Though the Government of Ghana has made effort to eradicate Malaria in the country, the disease is still the number one of the top ten diseases causing all hospital attendance in the East Mamprusi District. The lack of a primary healthcare facility in Zambulkura to provide quick primary healthcare services is causing sufferings and deaths of children, pregnant women, and the aged. Donations received from donors through GG played a crucial role in enabling our NGO to buy rapid malaria test kits, malaria medicines, cough syrup, de-wormers, multivitamins among other logisticts to carry out Malaria screenings and treatment in the Zambulkura and surrounding communities. The medicines and all necessary logistics were bought in Accra and taken to Zambulkura by a team of two medical professionals who were joined by a Physician Assistant, 2 Nurses, 2 medical Laboratory Technicians from Nalerigu Baptist Hospital to Zambulkura for the program. Before our medical team travelled to Zambulkura for the exercise we had sent them a week notice informing them of our  team’s coming to Zambulkura for the malaria testing and treatment exercise in the communities scheduled for 28^th December 2023.   As usual our team lodged in Nalerigu and on the day of the program, we hired a tricycle to convey the medicines to Zambulkura for the program whilst the medical team travelled on hired motor bikes since we didn’t have a vehicle to convey the team to Zambulkura for the screening and treatment exercise. We screened a total of 402 people out of which 163(40.54%) tested positive for the disease.

Of the total number of people screened 77 (19.15.%) were children between 0-5 years. Children age 6-17 years were 247 (61.44%). And the aged including pregnant women who were allowed to benefit from the exercise were 78(19.40 %).
Among the test results of 77 children aged 0-5years, 17 (22.08%) tested positive for malaria. Out of the 247 children aged 6-17years who were screened, 82 (33.19%) children tested positive for the malaria. Though several children were suffering from  malaria there was no severe malaria cases as such  all the positive malaria cases were treated at the field with no any referred to Nalerigu hospital for further management.  However, we found out that some of the pregnant women and some of the aged who attended our program had high blood pressures. Though our team advised them to be going to Nalerigu Baptist Hospital to be put on regular BP medication due to the long distance they are likely not to go. Out of the 78 adults who were part of the exercise 31 (39.74%) tested positive for malaria disease. From the test results presented above children of the school going age group 6- 17 years had the highest number of positive malaria cases of 82 (33.19%). The high number of school children suffering from malaria has a negative impact on school attendance as many children absent from school because of sickness.

The issue of pregnant women and the aged suffering from high blood pressure is a matter of concern to our medical team worsen with the lack of access to primary healthcare services by the communities. It pose as a treat to the lives of the people especially children and other vulnerable in these deprived communities.  For us at RRHZ , our noble donors and GlobalGiving Team  are super heroes because your support has made it possible for our NGO  to receive funds and procure needed logistics for our programs to save the lives of the people. The people of Zambulkura, the surrounding communities and Rescue and Restore Hope Zambulkura Ghana owes you lots of gratitude for touching the lives of the people positively. God bless each one of you abundantly

CONCLUSION

 The United Nations targeted the year 2030 for all member countries to achieve the Universal Health Coverage (UHC). In as much as Governments are making effort to achieve it, several rural communities in deprived countries are struggling and will not likely achieve it because of Global economic challenges confronting many nations. This calls for NGOs to get involve in reaching out to contribute in making primary healthcare accessible to deprived rural communities. Our NGO, Rescue and Restore Hope Zambulkura Ghana is committed in contributing towards the achievement of the UHC.  Organizing malaria screenings and treatment in Zambulkura and surrounding communities will continue to be carried out as a temporary measure. We still aim at constructing a primary healthcare facility in Zambulkura to provide a 24-hour healthcare services to serve as a permanent solution. It is our hope to mobilize sufficient funds to complete the construction of the primary health facility we have started to construct in Zambulkura to make healthcare easily accessible to the people.

Thank you GlobalGiving Team and to all our amazing donors.

 By Maxwell Koligu Tidow - Founder, Rescue and Restore Hope Zambulkura Ghana

Links:

• website