Health
Health Experts Make Case For Depression Patients
Some psychiatrists and
psychologists say lack of awareness constitutes a major challenge in the stigmatisation of people living with depression in Nigeria.
They told newsmen in Lagos last Wednesday, that continuous enlightenment programmes would help to create more awareness about the disorder in order to reduce its burden.
A Consultant Psychiatrist, Dr Maymunah Kadiri, said that the prevalence rates of depression in Nigeria were higher due to environmental factors that contributed to its genesis.
Kadiri, who is also the Chief Medical Officer at a Lagos based private hospital, Pinnacle Medical Services said.“In developing countries like Nigeria, the prevalence rates of depression are higher because environmental factors that contribute to the genesis of depressive disorders are more preponderant.
“These include high rates of poverty, a lack of social welfare and high rates of endemic infectious diseases, to mention just a few.
While noting that depression tends to be masked by somatic symptoms, which may explain why it is under- diagnosed or under-recognised, Kadiri revealed that its.
“Prevalence rates vary from 11 per cent to 60 per cent and higher rates are observed, depending on study setting and assessment tool, “ she said.
The consultant said that the way forward to reducing stigmatisation was by creating more awareness through health promotion, seminars, and the involvement of the media.
According to her, “Other ways are through providing education in schools, government agencies, various organisations about depression, the impact on academic, work, and the importance of seeking treatment.“And most especially, people should refer them to the appropriate specialists who can treat them.
Also speaking, the Head of Department, Psychiatry, University of Lagos, Prof. Joseph Adeyemi said most people did not visit psychiatrists when they felt the symptoms of depression.
He said that such attitude was due to unawareness and fear of being stigmatised, thereby making it difficult for people with depression to present themselves at the hospitals.
“Many of them will rather try to look for other explanations to their problems which will further delay their visiting the hospital for proper diagnosis and treatment, “ he said.
Adeyemi also stated that more than 90 per cent of people who were depressed were likely not to get attention when they visited regular doctors, adding that doctors tend not to diagnose the symptoms of depression and will rather talk about the physical problems than the emotional ones.
“These people attribute most of their problems to spiritual ones and so they start visiting spiritualists which will further compound their problems, “ he said.
In his words, “people’s attitude toward those suffering from depression was poor and as such, there was need for public enlightenment by mental health professionals in order to change people’s attitude.
“Such enlightenment programmes will make people understand the disorder and stigmatisation will reduce.
“People should be made to know that once symptoms of the disorder are identified, such should be referred to the health professionals for immediate attention, “
Also, an Associate Professor of Psychiatry, and Head, Behavoural Medicine Department, Lagos State Univeristy of Medicine, Ikeja, Dr Abiodun Adewuya, said that many unemployed graduates were likely to develop low self esteem due to unemployment in the first few years of graduation.
“Many of such graduates end up in depression; disappointment in their families and the society, which can lead to negative reactions such as violence, robbery, suicide and rape. “In order for many of them to alleviate depression, they tend to engage in substance use including drug and alcohol abuse, “ he said.
Adewuya urged the Federal Government to create a system that would allow establishment of industries where people could be employed.
“The government should provide an enabling environment including the provision of good roads and constant electricity for companies to develop in the area of production, while employing many people.
Adeyuwa stressed the need to shift education from the basic to technical work, hand- work, so that many people will be skilled in various fields, maintaining that This will reduce the burden of unemployment and therefore reduce the rate of mentally ill people in the society.
In her contribution, Dr Olubukola Hassan, Founder, Nightingale Mental Health Foundation, urged the three tiers of government to take mental health as one of their major policies.
“We will like our governments at the local, state and Federal levels to see the importance of mental health, not only for the millions who still go untreated.
“They should see the importance, also, for the economies of individual poverty and lack of well-being in our nation, she said.
According to her, there is a need for collaboration with individuals and corporate organisations in providing services in the mental health sector as well as the public and brainstorm on the way forward on issues surrounding mental health.
“This will be an opportunity for all stakeholders to identify, brainstorm and discuss significant mental health policy.
Hassan further stressed the need to stimulate the government and other agencies to increase the effectiveness of their own mental health programmes.
Two United States scientists who unraveled the human micro RNA have won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2024.
Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun won the coveted prize for their work on microRNA as their discoveries help explain how complex life emerged on earth and how the human body is made up of a wide variety of different tissues.
MicroRNAs influence how genes – the instructions for life – are controlled inside organisms, including humans.
Every cell in the human body contains the same raw genetic information, locked in our DNA.
However, despite starting with the identical genetic information, the cells of the human body are wildly different in form and function.
The electrical impulses of nerve cells are distinct from the rhythmic beating of heart cells. The metabolic powerhouse that is a liver cell is distinct to a kidney cell, which filters urea out of the blood.
The light-sensing abilities of cells in the retina are different in skillset to white blood cells that produce antibodies to fight infection.
So much variety can arise from the same starting material because of gene expression.
The US scientists were the first to discover microRNAs and how they exerted control on how genes are expressed differently in different tissues.
The medicine and physiology prize winners are selected by the Nobel Assembly of Sweden’s Karolinska Institute.
They said: “Their groundbreaking discovery revealed a completely new principle of gene regulation that turned out to be essential for multicellular organisms, including humans.
“It is now known that the human genome codes for over 1,000 microRNAs.”
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has begun acting to curb effects of antibiotic pollution.
The new guidance on wastewater and solid waste management for antibiotic manufacturing sheds light on this important but neglected challenge ahead of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) High-Level Meeting on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) taking place on 26 September 2024.
The emergence and spread of AMR caused by antibiotic pollution could undermine the effectiveness of antibiotics globally, including the medicines produced at the manufacturing sites responsible for the pollution.
Despite high antibiotic pollution levels being widely documented, the issue is largely unregulated and quality assurance criteria typically do not address environmental emissions. In addition, once distributed, there is a lack of information provided to consumers on how to dispose of antibiotics when they are not used, for example, when they expire or when a course is finished but there is still antibiotic left over.
“Pharmaceutical waste from antibiotic manufacturing can facilitate the emergence of new drug-resistant bacteria, which can spread globally and threaten our health. Controlling pollution from antibiotic production contributes to keeping these life-saving medicines effective for everyone,” said Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for AMR ad interim.
Globally, there is a lack of accessible information on the environmental damage caused by manufacturing of medicines.
“The guidance provides an independent and impartial scientific basis for regulators, procurers, inspectors, and industry themselves to include robust antibiotic pollution control in their standards,” said Dr Maria Neira, Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, WHO. “Critically, the strong focus on transparency will equip buyers, investors and the general public to make decisions that account for manufacturers’ efforts to control antibiotic pollution.”
In a concerted effort to curb brain drain, the Kebbi State Government has harmonised medical doctors’ salaries to be at par with their colleagues in the federal government’s tertiary health facilities.
Kebbi State Commissioner for Health, Musa Inusa-Isma’il, disclosed this at the handing over of ambulances to the state-owned health facilities at the Ministry of Health in Birnin Kebbi yesterday.
Inusa Isma’il, according to a statement by Ahmed Idris, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, said the essence of the harmonisation was to retain the existing medical doctors and attract more to the services of the state.
According to him, the doctors across the state had already started enjoying the new salaries from August 2024.
He said the release of the vehicles was in fulfilment of Governor Nasir Idris’ promise to uplift health care services in the state.
“His Excellency said I should inform you, the beneficiaries of this gesture, that the vehicle should be strictly used for the intended purpose. It should not be used for anything else.
“If there is no referral case, each of the vehicles must be parked at the hospital by 6 pm. The governor said you should warn your drivers against reckless driving as well as violating the instructions.
“We should also do everything possible to reciprocate the gesture by working according to the terms and conditions attached,” he advised.
The benefiting health facilities included Sir Yahaya Memorial Hospital, Birnin Kebbi; State Teaching Hospital, Kalgo; General Hospital, Argungu; General Hospital, Yauri; General Hospital, Zuru; and General Hospital, Bunza.
In his speech, the permanent secretary of the ministry, Dr Shehu Koko, recalled that the ambulances were handed over to the ministry last Friday by the governor for the onward handover to the benefiting hospitals.
He observed that the ambulances would go a long way in improving the referral system in the state, adding that delays in reaching the secondary and tertiary facilities would be eliminated.
The permanent secretary attributed the high rate of maternal mortality in the country to delays in getting to the health facilities for proper medical care.
“We believe with the provision of these ambulances, part of the gaps we have in our referral system will be addressed, whereby patients who require secondary healthcare could be easily transported to secondary and tertiary health centres, where they can get such help,” he said.
In a goodwill message, Commissioner for Information and Culture Alhaji Yakubu Ahmed expressed gratitude to the governor for the support he has given to the ministry to excel.
While advising the beneficiaries to use the vehicles judiciously, the commissioner advised that services and maintenance of the vehicles must be prompt to derive the maximum benefits from the vehicles.
The commissioner also highlighted some achievements recorded by the government in the last year, including beautification of the state capital, completion of a multimillion-naira ultramodern state secretariat, road construction, construction and renovation of classrooms and upgrading of some health facilities, among others.