OSMAN TO CONTEST TOLON NDC PRIMARY (DG, SEPT 27, 2011, PAGE 13)

A MARKETING Executive, Mr Norgah Naizer Osman is making feverish preparations to contest the parliamentary primaries of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Tolon constituency in the Northern Region.

Mr Osman, who disclosed this to the Daily Graphic in an interview, said he was very optimistic of being elected to represent the NDC during the 2012 parliamentary elections because the constituents were aware of his abilities.

“When nominations are opened, I would pick my form and begin my campaign activities,” he stated.

Mr Osman said he had decided to contest the parliamentary seat due to his desire to help champion the development of the area, which he observed, had not been given a fair share of the national cake.

“Tolon is endowed with natural resources including economic trees like mango, neem and shea nut. Our women need some training to enable them undertake neem seed oil extraction for domestic and commercial purposes,” he mentioned.

According to Mr Osman, when given the nod to represent the constituency in parliament, his main priority would be to embark on an aggressive development agenda to transform Tolon and its surrounding communities.

He identified road rehabilitation as a key component of that agenda and mentioned the Nyankpala, Gbulin and Datoyili link road and the Nyankpala Township roads as some of the roads that would receive attention.

Another component of his planned development agenda would be to work towards extending the national grid to all communities in Tolon and its surroundings.

He said many areas, including Naha, Gbulahagu, Golinga, Kpalisogu and Dindo, were without power and this impacted negatively on the social and economic lives of the inhabitants.

“I also intend working towards improving potable water supply and again spearhead the construction of an Information Communication Technology (ICT) centre and library in Nyankpala,” he further mentioned.

On the source of funding for these planned projects, Mr Osman mentioned that “a huge chunk of the funds would come from donors,” noting that he would employ his marketing skills to attract the needed funds.

Meanwhile, Mr Osman also has plans to undertake activities aimed towards strengthening the NDC’s party structures in the Tolon area.

“I would work towards the establishment of a party office and an MP’s office in Nyankpala and Tolon,” he stated.

TAMALE TEACHING HOSPITAL PURSUES RECOVERY AGENDA (DG, SEPT 26, 2011, PAGE 19

ABOUT five years ago, the Northern Regional Hospital, now Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH), was plunged into a crisis as several years of neglect left the hospital in a precarious state requiring ‘intensive care’.

With some of the wards being reduced to death traps coupled with the lack of staff and equipment, the centre could simply not hold.

From then till now, however, a lot of things have changed at the hospital and one would be rightly placed to conclude that the hospital is on the path of a major revival.

This renewed hope is driven by notable improvements in various sectors of the hospital’s operations, ranging from infrastructure to service delivery.

Expansion and rehabilitation project

When the hospital was commissioned in 1974, it was meant to function as a regional hospital for the Northern Region and also as a referral point for the Upper East and West regions.

It served as such for several years until 2007 when it became necessary to convert it into a tertiary facility to support the training of medical students of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences of the University for Development Studies (UDS).

However, the change in status posed serious difficulties to the hospital as it had overnight taken on a status that, realistically, was then beyond its capabilities.

Many of the existing structures at the hospital were in a very deplorable state, especially the tower block. This compelled the workers to abandon some of the floors.

It became pretty obvious that the hospital became overwhelmed by the rise in patient numbers as a result of population growth over the years.

As a result, the consulting rooms became inadequate and there were not enough rooms to provide offices for many doctors and administrative staff.

Many wards, such as the maternity and casualty wards, became crowded and patients were compelled to use the floor as there was not enough space for more beds.

In the past, various political administrations had made pledges to rehabilitate the TTH, but these pledges never materialised, until May 2010, when the long-awaited rehabilitation and expansion of the TTH finally took off.

The President, Prof John Evans Atta Mills, cut the sod for the project, following a financing arrangement the government had entered into with the government of the Netherlands.

The first phase of the project, which is in progress, involves the construction of a new four-storey block at the eastern side of the hospital and an innovative link building, which would link the new block to the existing blocks.

The new block is expected to house critical areas such as an Accident and Emergency Centre, Diagnostic Imaging Unit, Labour and Delivery Suite, Operating Theatres and Intensive and Coronary Care units.

The innovative link building provides easy access to all levels of the new and existing buildings for ambulant, wheelchair or stretchered patients and visitors alike, whiles internal lifts in the new building are reserved for medical use.

According to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the TTH, Dr Ken Sagoe, as at August, this year, the contractor for the project – Simed International – indicated that the construction of this block was 90 per cent complete.

“We are expecting that by October, this year, they would have finished with the rehabilitation of the old children’s ward and old medical ward. They would then proceed to tackle the tower block,” he mentioned during an interaction with the press.

Dr Sagoe noted that when the construction of the four-storey was completed, the hospital would have over 600 beds, adding that this would be a significant development.

Although many changes have gone on in the TTH over the past three years, this project appears to be the most glaring and gratifying to the people of the north.

Boosting staff strength

One of the key challenges that faced the TTH during its transition period was the shortage of critical staffs.

It required a number of professionals, including medical officers, specialists, consultants, general and specialised nurses and laboratory technicians.

As at the end of December 2007, the TTH could only boast of 21 doctors and a handful of pharmacists, laboratory technicians and other staffs. However, having followed progress at the hospital since that period, it is pretty obvious that the hospital has made consistent progress in increasing both the quality and quantity of its workforce.

In 2008, the number of doctors increased to 36 and further increased to 58 and 102 in 2009 and 2010, respectively. As at the middle of this year, the hospital now had 112 doctors and there are indications that the number would increase further by the end of the year.

Checks also revealed that nursing levels have seen a sustained increase from 309 in December 2009 to 450 in 2010 and 706 in mid-2011, with 70 of them being midwives.

In the laboratory section, the number of technicians has increased from a figure of nine in 2008 to 59 in 2011. There are now 25 pharmacy staffs as against six in 2008.

The creation of new sections such as audit, public relations and human resource, has equally led to the employment of more professionals for these areas.

Availability of specialist care

One significant development closely linked to the increase in staff numbers is the availability of specialists.

Some few years back, all manner of cases, ranging from complex to less complicated, were being referred to other tertiary facilities in the south. This is no more the case, since the TTH now has a number of specialists, including an ophthalmologist, neurosurgeon, obstetric gynaecologists, radiologists, psychiatrists, orthopaedic surgeons, paediatricians and urologists, who offer services not only to people in the Northern Region, but those in the Upper East and Upper West regions and beyond.

The pile of work that greets these specialists each day is overwhelming and they deserve commendation for remaining committed to the north.

These specialists have helped the hospital to improve and expand its clinical services and have performed lifesaving surgeries.

In November, 2009, the hospital saved the life of a teenager, Iddrisu Rukaya, who was at the point of death when she was found lying in a pool of blood in a gutter at Kakpayili, a suburb of Tamale,

“When they brought her, the skull had crushed open and a significant chunk of her brain matter had protruded and stuck to the skin. In fact, she was between life and death,” the Head of the Neurosurgical Unit of the TTH, Dr Adam Abass told the Daily Graphic when he was interviewed.

“The whole bone fragment on that segment was off and sinking into the brain and there was also some debris in the brain,” he further mentioned.

Rukaya underwent surgery, successfully, and recovered subsequently through a combination of intensive care and physiotherapy.

In that same year, the TTH performed, successfully, its first renal dialysis, a procedure that is performed for people whose kidneys are not functioning well or are damaged either permanently or temporarily.

Similar operations have been performed at the eye, gynaecology, urology and other sections.

According to the Public Relations Officer of the TTH, Nii-Otu Ankrah, the setting up of an endoscopic surgical unit has enabled the hospital to do endoscopic surgeries and interventional endoscopy.

He also mentioned the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and the neonatal ICU as two other critical units that were set up and “they have played critical roles in helping save the lives of patients.”

Replacing obsolete equipment

In the absence of modern equipment, however, the work of these specialists is limited.

For instance, the consultant urologists, Dr Akis Afoko is left with no option than to use out-dated methods to repair urological conditions, such as open surgeries.

He told the Daily Graphic that he could perform more surgeries in shorter periods with an endoscopic machine, as well as other equipment.

At the eye unit, the ophthalmologist, Dr Seth Wanye has been compelled to use outmoded slit lamps, tonometers, microscopes and surgical instruments.

Dr Wanye said the eye clinic would not have to refer patients with conditions that require laser treatment or cornea transplant to other hospitals if the TTH had a modern laser machine and other equipment.

However, in the estimation of Dr Sagoe, these challenges could soon become a thing of the past because the hospital was expecting over 80 containers full of medical equipment which would be used to furnish the various sections of the new block when construction is completed.

He also mentioned that the government had awarded on contract the establishment of an MRI facility, which is expected to enhance medical imaging at the hospital.

Already, the hospital has been a beneficiary of large quantities of donations of medical equipment from various philanthropic institutions and partners.

In fact, the hospital management is hopeful it would soon have a modern eye care centre with the support of the Lions Eye Centre and the University of Louisville, both in Louisville, Kentucky, in the United States.

The head of the eye clinic, Dr Seth Wanye mentioned that these partners have pledged to donate state of the art equipment to the eye clinic, which would enable the hospital to perform major eye surgical operations that include cornea transplant and laser treatment for diabetic patients with severe retinal diseases.

He said in addition, a tissue bank and an optical laboratory would also be established at the eye unit to enable the unit produce eye glasses and make them available to patients at affordable prices.

Way forward

One thing remains clear, with consistent effective leadership, government support and partnership, the TTH is on the path to realising its vision of becoming a “centre of excellence for quality tertiary healthcare and medical education and research.”

GMA TO LAY DOWN TOOLS IF NOT MIGRATED TO SSSS (DG, SEPT 26, 2011, PAGE 3)

THE National Executive Council of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has asked its members to lay down their tools from October 8, this year if they are not migrated onto the Single Spine Salary Structure (SSSS) before then.

According to the association, the Fair Wages and Salary Commission (FWSC) has slacked in migrating doctors onto the SSSS, thereby preventing doctors from enjoying the 20 per cent salary increment, which the government had implemented across board.

“Doctors are being short-changed, causing a lot of concerns and resulting in agitations, frustrations and low morale, especially in the light of current harsh economic realities,” the GMA stated in a statement released to the press.

The statement, signed jointly by the President of the GMA, Dr Emmanuel Adom Winful and the Assistant General Secretary, Dr Frank Serebour, was issued at the close of the 5th NEC meeting of the GMA held in Tamale in the Northern Region over the weekend.

“We have been forced to take this line of action. We hope we would not be pushed to that point because we have our patients at heart,” Dr Winful stated in response to a question from journalists on why the GMA should opt for a strike action.

He explained that the GMA and the FWSC had jaw jawed on a number of occasions regarding some of the areas of contention, but noted that the Commission had not demonstrated enough commitment to resolving those discrepancies.

Dr Winful explained that the grading of medical officers on the SSSS remained a bone of contention between the GMA and the FWSC.

He explained that whiles the job evaluation conducted by the FWSC and representatives of all workers unions had placed medical officers higher than some other health workers, the FWSC had graded this category of health workers on the SSSS higher than medical officers.

“Having made extensive inputs into the grade structure of the SSSS based on the scientific job evaluation and analysis as far back as December last year, the GMA is disappointed that the FWSC has created distortions which have no bearing on the job evaluation done,” the statement read.

“It has become absolutely clear that the FWSC does not either believe in scientific and evidence-based analysis or are deliberately stalling the process,” it mentioned further.

In the face of the current stand-off, the GMA is therefore demanding that all issues concerning grading, market premium, inducement and other related matters should be concluded by close of October 7, 2011.

“The FWSC must show unequivocal evidence of migration onto the SSSS by October 7, 2011, including all arrears from January, 2010,” the statement read.

STOP MASTURBATING WITH DANGEROUS OBJECTS - DR AFOKO (DG, SEPT 26, 2011, PAGE 3)

A UROLOGIST at the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH), Dr Akis Afoko has cautioned Ghanaians who have cultivated the habit of using dangerous objects to masturbate their genitals to desist from that practice.

According to him, such foreign materials could destroy blood vessels in the reproductive system, thereby leading to internal bleeding which can result in death.

He said men can suffer additional complications, such as impotence from this dangerous practice.

Dr Afoko’s warning follows revelations that some men use safety pins to masturbate the male genitalia, whiles women use thermometers and candle wax to insert into the female genitalia.

“When these objects tear the blood vessels in the genitals, it would lead to bleeding and the blood would accumulate inside the system over time and lead to several complications, including death,” he stated.

Two weeks ago, doctors at the TTH successfully operated on a 32-year old man who had a 12-centimeter safety-pin trapped in his penis.

The pin allegedly found its way into the patient’s penis when he attempted masturbating with it.

Dr Afoko, who led a four-member medical team to perform the surgery, said the safety-pin was removed and the patient had fully recovered.

He said the team used a surgical procedure, known in medical language as ‘open ureterolithotomy’, which involves an incision into the urethra for the removal of any foreign object.

He said the patient earlier stated during examination that the pin must have found its way into the penis because it was fixed somewhere in the bed sheet, which he used the night before.

“He later confessed that he was masturbating with the safety pin when it suddenly went deeper and deeper till he could not remove it and sensing danger, he reported to the hospital for attention,” he said.

Dr Afoko cautioned men and women to be careful of what they do in their attempt to get sexual pleasure, noting that pleasure could come with dangerous complications.

On the success of the operation, Dr Afoko said many people were unaware that the TTH had a number of specialist physicians who were performing life-saving surgeries.

“Doctors at the TTH have the potential to transform medical practice in the north if given the needed push,” he stated.

Asked what type of support they needed, he said “we need modern medical equipment, like endoscopy machines, which can make our surgeries simpler and faster.”

Meanwhile, although some urologists have occasionally visited the north to repair urological disorders, Dr Afoko is the first and only urologist to have accepted to work in a hospital in Northern Ghana.

As expected the pile of work before him each day is overwhelming, but he said he remains committed to serving the north.

Currently, the TTH boasts of about not less than 100 doctors and they include a number of specialists, such an ophthalmologist, neurosurgeon, obstetric gynaecologists, radiologists, psychiatrists, orthopaedic surgeons, paediatricians and urologist.

CATHOLIC CHURCH COMMENDED FOR SUPPORTING THE POOR (DG, SEPT 23, 2011, PAGE 29)

THE Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Yendi, Mr Issah Zakaria has commended the Roman Catholic Church in Yendi for initiating a number of development projects in the Eastern Corridor of the Northern Region. The projects, he noted, had contributed significantly to uplifting the socio-economic and intellectual lives of the people, as well as helping sustain the peace in the area. Mr Zakaria mentioned, for instance, that the Catholic Church had established 45 primary schools, 9 junior high schools and 17 kindergartens in its bid to enhance access to education in rural areas. He said the St Joseph Technical Institute, in Saboba, which was established by the Catholic Church some years back, was also providing the needed training to young people to enable them become independent. The DCE made these remarks during the ordination ceremony for two reverend ministers of the Yendi Our Lady of Lourdes Cathedral. They are Rev. Seth Anthony Yeboah and Rev. Michael Liebar Cobb. They were ordained by the Yendi Catholic Bishop, Most Rev. Vincent Sowah Boi-Nai. In the area of health, the DCE intimated that the Catholic Church had constructed two clinics at Sambule and Chamba in the Zabzugu/Tatale and Saboba districts. Mr Zakaria also expressed appreciation over the role being played by the Catholic Church in ongoing efforts to restore peace in Yendi. He said the church had set up a peace centre where various interested parties, including members of the two royal families –the Abudu and Andani – met occasionally to dialogue on issues of mutual concern. Bishop Boi-Nai, on his part, implored the newly-ordained reverends to let their lives reflect one of simplicity, prayerfulness, justice and charity towards the poor and disadvantaged in society. He expressed regret over recent ungodly acts of some supposed men of God that had helped to denigrate the church and stressed that it was about time that leaders of churches cleansed the church of these untoward characters. The bishop also advocated a healthy relationship among all priests, to enable them rely on each other for the development of their spiritual and intellectual lives.

WORK TO START ON DAMONGO-SAWLA ROAD (DG, SEPT 22, 2011, PAGE 35)

THE construction of the Sawla-Damongo-Fufulso road in the western part of the Northern Region is set to commence in October this year. The road, which is to be developed into a major trunk road, would link Tamale, the capital of the Northern Region, to Wa, the capital of the Upper West region. When completed, it would improve the socio-economic lives of the people by enhancing mobility, aid the transportation of agricultural produce, increase trade and serve as a catalyst for the development of the communities located along the route. The road also serves as the only access route to three of Ghana’s important tourism landmarks, the Mole National Park, the Larabanga Ancient Mosque and the Mystic Stone. The District Chief Executive for West Gonja, Mr Adam Mutawakilu told the Daily Graphic in an interview that the project would be financed from a $166m grant facility extended to the government by the African Development Bank (AfDB). He said the project would be executed by two Chinese construction firms, the China Waters and Electrical Co-operation China (CWEC) and the Harbour Engineering Co-operation (HEC) in two lots. The first lot, he noted stretches from Fufulso junction to Larabanga, and would be executed by the CWEC, whiles work on lot two, which extends from Larabanga to Sawla, would be undertaken by the HEC. Mr Mutawakilu said already the contractors had gone on site and were setting up their camps to start work on the 147.5km road, which traverses three districts, Central Gonja, West Gonja and Sawla-Tuna-Kalba districts. “They are currently making attempts to locate sources of construction materials, such as chippings, water and gravel,” he stated. The DCE further revealed that compensation had already been paid to all persons whose buildings would be affected by the project and therefore no objections were expected from the people. “We finished the payments as far back as March after we concluded negotiations with all the affected persons,” he said. The poor state of the Sawla-Damongo-Fufulso road had been a major source of worry not only to residents of communities located along the route, but travellers who use the route to Wa and Bole. Several portions of the road are inaccessible during the rains as gaping and undulating potholes have developed on these portions, sometimes forcing drivers to abandon the route. The upgrading of the road into asphalt had been captured in the budgets of past and present governments on a number of occasions, but the real work had remained a mirage. Some political leaders even cut the sod for the construction of the road on one or two occasions, but all these later turned to a camouflage. “We hope this time around, it would not be the usual promise and fail. We need to see concrete action before we take these statements serious,” a resident of Damongo, Mr Abdul-Fatawu Bukari stated in an interview.

TAKE STEPS TO CURB BUSH FIRE MENACE - SAYS PARLIAMENTARY SELECT C'TEE (DG, SEPT 22, 2011, PAGE 13)

THE Parliamentary Select Committee on Lands and Forestry has implored cabinet and the country’s environmental institutions to team up and take pragmatic action to address the menace of bush fires. After touring forest plantations in the Northern Region, it came to light that bush fires and cattle grazing were the biggest threats to the country’s reforestation drives, particularly in the north. Each year, the nation looks on helplessly as fires ravage farms and forest plantations, thereby bringing the toils of farmers and those who planted the trees to naught. Hon Albert Abongo, who is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bongo and chairman of the committee, said it was high time the nation’s leaders make the initiative to bring this annual human-induced disaster to a halt. “The dry season is around the corner and it would be regrettable if once again we sit and watch unconcerned us some unscrupulous individuals burn the food crops and trees which were raised with huge investments,” he stated. The committee inspected the status of work at various project sites for the National Forest Plantation Development Programme in the Central Gonja, West Gonja, Yendi and Nanumba North districts. Among the forest reserves it inspected was the Yakombo Forest Reserve, near Buipe, which occupies an estimated land area of 1,160km² and is considered the largest forest reserve in Ghana. The MPs expressed satisfaction over the execution of the plantation programme and entreated the Forestry Services Department (FSD) to ensure the proper and sustained management of the plantations to guarantee their survival. They however raised concerns over the delayed payment of field employees and charged the FSD and its implementing partners to fast-track the payment process so as not to jeopardise the execution of the project. The Northern Regional Forestry Manager, Mr Ebenezer Dzaney Djagbletey, who took the MPs round the various sites, said the Northern Region had exceeded its targets for the plantation programme. “A total area of 3,309 hectares had been planted by the end of December, 2010, which is far higher than the 2000 hectares target that had been set,” he told the committee. He said in Yendi, a total area of 1,126 hectares was planted in off-reserve areas, whiles 200 hectares of area was planted in existing forest reserves. In Tamale, a total area of 462 hectares had been planted in off-reserve areas, whiles 70 hectares of areas located within forest reserves had been planted. In Walewale, Damongo, Buipe and Bole, Mr Djagbletey mentioned that between 200 and 406 hectares of off-reserve areas had been planted in each area. The Forestry Manager further noted that not only had the plantation programme restored helped to conserve and protect the environment, but also created a number of employment avenues. He said in Yendi alone, many energetic youth had been engaged to fill over 2000 job opportunities, whiles in Tamale, Damongo, Buipe and Walewale, between 500 and 820 job hands had been engaged in each area. Mr Djagbletey said in spite of the progress, the programme was facing some challenges, such as the delayed payment of field staff, the lack of logistics to facilitate field work and the limited supply of protective clothing.

UDS, INSTITUTE OF LINGUISTICS TO UNDERTAKE JOINT RESEARCH (DG, SEPT 21, 2011, PAGE 11)

THE University for Development Studies (UDS) and the Ghana Institute of Linguistics, Literacy and Bible Translation (GILLBT) have entered into a partnership to undertake joint research, advocacy and teaching. The two institutions would team up to facilitate the implementation of development projects in the Savannah area by using indigenous languages as a tool for effective communication. Whiles the UDS boasts of a rich experience in community outreach and research, GILLBT through its cooperative agreement with the University of Ghana’s Institute of African Studies has developed most indigenous languages in the Northern and Savannah ecological areas of Ghana. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the two institutions on Monday at the premises of the UDS. The Vice-Chancellor of the UDS, Prof Haruna Yakubu and the Executive Director of GILLBT, Dr Paul Opoku-Mensah appended their signatures to the agreement on behalf of their respective institutions. As part of the partnership, GILLBT would collaborate with the UDS to translate and disseminate training materials as well as other policy documents in the Northern indigenous languages. The initial step in that direction would be to translate and disseminate the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) strategy and other related literature into the local languages of the SADA areas. The two institutions would also jointly organise next year’s Harmattan School, which is an annual intellectual platform organised by the Centre for Continuing Education and Interdisciplinary Research (CCEIR) of the UDS for various scholars to brainstorm on development issues as they pertain to Northern Ghana. Prof Yakubu described the partnership as very vital and timely, stressing that academic institutions could only make progress when they work together to complement each other’s efforts and achieve higher results. He said the UDS would keep its doors open to all institutions and organisations that are interested in partnering the university to advance the development of the Savannah. On his part, Dr Opoku-Mensah noted that the partnership marked a watershed in the history and operation of GILLBT. He said although GILLBT had been operating in the north for several years, it had never taken a giant step to play active roles in the development of the area. “Through this partnership, GILLBT would now make its presence relevant to the development of the north by using literacy as a catalyst for development,” he stated. Dr Opoku-Mensah again mentioned that GILLBT found the UDS as the right partner because both institutions had shared values that seek to relate academic work to community development. He said GILLBT had over the years developed its capacity to tap the potential of indigenous languages as a tool for national development.

EMPOWERING WOMEN FOR PEACE-BUILDING - WANEP TAKES A STEP (DG, SEPT 20, 2011, PAGE 11)

WOMEN have often been noted as being among the vulnerable groups during violent conflicts. Apart from being victims of abuse, they lose their economic livelihoods, as well as their families. Some scholars in conflict and development issues however opine that women must play active roles in peace-building efforts in their communities so they could help create an environment safe for them and their families. Agreeing with this line of thought, the United Nations (UN) Security Council, in 2000, adopted Resolution 1325, which stresses the need for women to have “equal participation and full involvement in all efforts for the maintenance and promotion of peace and security.” In an attempt to give meaning to this resolution, the West African Network for Peace-building (WANEP), Ghana, has been implementing a number of initiatives aimed at incorporating women in Northern Ghana into conflict resolution processes. Key among these initiatives is a series of training programmes on peace-building and conflict early warning system for selected women from areas in the north where conflicts are simmering or in its manifest stages. Like many other parts of the country, Northern Ghana has had its share of communal and political conflicts, fuelled by ethnic and chieftaincy disputes, as well as disputes over land and other resources. WANEP’s objective is therefore to build the capacity of some selected women in the north to support peace-building by promoting dialogue among the women folk. In this direction, WANEP, in partnership with the Canadian High Commission, has been imparting to these women the skills needed to facilitate conflict resolution, such as negotiation, dialogue and mediation. Through the training, the women also learn to appreciate the nature, sources, types and stages in conflict and its related nuances. In addition, WANEP-Ghana also develops the skills of the women to identify and pick up conflict early warning signals and communicate it to appropriate institutions for early response. The essence of this is to prevent the escalation of conflicts that could have been resolved during its latent stages. At one of such training workshops in Buipe, the capital of the Central Gonja district, Mr Theophilus Dokurugu, a board member of WANEP-Ghana, told the Daily Graphic that women were usually better placed to identify signs of impending danger. “They easily realise that there is conflict when the men begin to act in very unusual ways, such as meeting at odd times and giving unnecessary caution to their wives in relation to how they relate with other people,” he explained. Mr Dokurugu again mentioned that promoting dialogue among feuding groups is likely to be more successful when the women from these groups are willing to talk, socialise and demonstrate to the men that they are willing to co-exist in spite of their differences. “If you go to the market and the women are so embittered that they are not even willing to sit side by side to do business, ensuring dialogue becomes more and more difficult,” he stated. The Buipe peace workshop, which was supported by the district assembly, involved 30 women, 24 of whom were selected from the Lebu and Jinapor gates of the Buipe chieftaincy divide. Buipe was selected as one of the beneficiary districts of WANEP’s peace initiatives due to a protracted chieftaincy dispute that has threatened on a number of occasions to destroy the fragile peace in the area. Mr Justin Bayor, the National Network Co-ordinator of WANEP-Ghana, mentioned that apart from imparting skills to the women in Buipe, WANEP also creates an enabling environment for them to have frank discussions about some of the thorny issues that mostly spark or fuel conflicts in the area. “During the training, the women go into facilitated dialogue sessions, during which they document the issues, concerns and fears of women from both chieftaincy factions and seek a way forward in order to build bridges amongst them,” he intimated. Speaking at the training programme, the Canadian High Commissioner to Ghana, Ms Trudy Kernighan said although women were vulnerable in conflict situations, they could also be powerful agents for peace-building. She said the need for women’s full and equal participation in peace-building was not a mere wish, but a fundamental objective of the UN’s Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security that must be fulfilled.

RTU RELEGATION WOES DEEPEN (GRAPHIC SPORTS, SEPT 20-22, 2011, PAGE 2)

THE relegation of Real Tamale United (RTU) threatens to erode the continuous survival of the club as some interested parties are disagreeing on the way forward for the club. Whiles speculations are rife that some board members of the club are allegedly making arrangements to take over the newly-promoted premier league club, Wassaman, to replace RTU, founding members of the club think that such a move could spell doom for the club. In a press statement issued in Tamale and signed by Alhaji Alhassan Alolo, on behalf of the founding members, the group intimated that taking over a new club and using Tamale as its base would be to the detriment of RTU. “The board members, if they execute such a decision, would have rendered the toil and sweat that the founders of the club went through to make the club the beacon of the north,” the statement read. In the estimation of the group, such an action would amount to abandoning RTU at a time when the management should rather be “refurbishing the club to prepare it to face the intricacies of the first division.” “Paradoxically, the amount that would be used to purchase the said club could be used to strengthen RTU and place it back on track,” the statement further read. The founding members stated their resolve to defend the club from being replaced with another, stressing that “RTU remains a bona-fide club of the north. No person or group of persons should attempt to replace RTU with another club or use its name for another club.” Consequently, the group is pushing for the dissolution of the current management of the club, whiles backing any moves to institute an interim management.

SICKLE CELL DISEASE MANAGEMENT - NEWBORN SCREENING IS CRITICAL (DG, SEPT 16, 2011, PAGE 21)

IT has been estimated by the Sickle Cell Foundation of Ghana (SCFG) that about two per cent of babies born in Ghana have sickle cell disease. Although many Ghanaians have heard about the disease, many still remain unaware of the nature of SCD. What is sickle cell disease? Various experts define sickle cell in different ways, mostly in medical language. In the layman’s language, however, one could describe sickle cell as a term used to describe a number of blood disorders that occur when the red blood cells assume an abnormal shape, similar to a sickle ( a farm implement). When this occurs, the cells, which are responsible for carrying oxygen from the heart to various parts of the body, begin to malfunction and eventually stay shorter than they are expected. A reduction in red blood cells could result in anaemia. Again, when sickling cells lose their oxygen, they become sticky and stiff resulting in other complications, including stroke. The most popular notion among many Ghanaians is that anyone with sickle cell is condemned to early death. However, the President of the Sickle Cell Foundation of Ghana (SCFG), Prof. Kwaku Ohene-Frempong challenges this notion as he explains that “it is possible for babies with sickle cell to grow up to become independent living adults when adequate care is available from early childhood.” Are sickling tests effective? In fact, the fear of SCD has led many Ghanaians to accept the norm of undergoing sickling tests as a means to determining their sickling status. However, Dr Frempong insists that sickling tests are not the right approach to managing SCD. In his estimation, these tests do not give a clear picture of one’s status and, therefore, some of those who are declared negative after undergoing sickling tests could sometimes possess genes, which when combined with other genes cause sickle cell. “There are people with AC. They are healthy, but the ‘C’ in their genes is a trait of sickle cell because SC is a type of sickle cell,” he noted. He said the implication therefore is that someone with AC, although declared negative, could produce an offspring with sickle cell disease when the other partner is AS, because the baby could pick the C and S from both parents and this combines to form SC. In fact, what many do not know is that there are four most common types of SCD. Apart from ‘SS’, which is widely known, we have ‘SC’, ‘S/beta-plus thalassemia’ and ‘S/beta-zero thalassemia’. According to Prof Frempong, ‘SC’ is the second most common type of SCD in Ghana. “One per cent of new-borns in Ghana are SS and 0.8 per cent are SC. So this population, in addition to those with other forms of sickle cell disease, constitute about two per cent of the population,” states Prof Frempong. One should, therefore, not be deceived that it is not possible for him or her to have a child with sickle cell disease just because he or she was declared negative following a sickling test. Prof Frempong, who works with the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, again explains that sickling tests also leads to a situation where healthy people are declared positive and put on treatment, which should not be the situation. “People with a trait of ‘S’ genes are declared positive, but not all these people are actually sick. For instance those with ‘AS’, although declared positive, are actually healthy and do not need to be put on medication,” he stated. He said it was therefore wrong for persons with ‘AS’ to be put on Folic Acid, because they do not need it. The question to ask, then, is: “if sickling test is not the best way to determine one’s sickling status, which way is appropriate?” There are other tests that could indicate the gene types in your red blood cells and the most common is Haemoglobin Electrophoresis, according to Prof Frempong. He however admits that this test is much expensive than the sickling test. The right way to go Ultimately, the best way to manage sickle cell from causing damage to humans is to ensure early detection and management of the disease. And the best way to detect sickle early enough is through the screening of newly-born babies. “When we screen blood samples of babies, we are able to tell who is born with sickle cell and who is not. Some interventions can then be made to save those born with the disease from any complications that may arise when the disease begins to assert itself,” Prof Frempong mentioned. He said one of the major causes of complications for children with sickle cell disease was infection. “We can put the child on antibiotics so as to reduce the chances of getting infection,” he noted. Although newborn screening, as doctors put it, is the way to go in managing sickle cell, one challenge that health officials usually face is how to convince parents that their children have SCD. So many people do not believe it when they are told that their babies have SCD because as Dr Frempong explains: “a sickle cell baby does not show any signs of the disease until after one year.” This, he explains, is because the ‘A’ Haemoglobin, which is the one affected by sickle cell, is produced in very low amounts when the baby is born. “Below one year, the amount of ‘A’ Haemoglobin in the blood is between 10 to 40 per cent. However, after the first year, the ‘A’ Hemoglobin becomes the dominant Hemoglobin, over 90 per cent,” stated Prof Frempong. If you are reading this, therefore, do not be deceived into thinking that your baby does not have sickle cell simply because he or she looks healthy at birth. National Newborn Screening Programme To promote early screening and management of SCD in Ghana, the Ghana Health Service, Ministry of Health (MOH) and SCFG partnered to design and launch the National Newborn Screening Programme (NNbSP) for SCD in 2010. As part of the implementation of the NNbSP, the screening laboratory at the Noguchi Memorial Institute of Medical Research, Legon, is being expanded to carry out the screening of blood samples from all parts of the country for SCD. Again, plans are underway to construct a blood and sickle cell centre in Kumasi to provide quality and comprehensive care and research into sickle cell. Another critical aspect of the NNbSP is the training of health personnel in all corners of the country to provide quality supportive care for people living with SCD, especially babies and children. In line with this, the foundation recently organised a residential training workshop on the NNbSP for doctors, nurses, midwives, public and community health nurses and allied-health personnel from the Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions. A number of selected topics were treated during the two-day training programme, including: Screening, tracking and follow-up of new-borns with SCD; Interpreting results of laboratory tests for haemoglobin disorders; nursing services; and patient education and support. The workshop helped to re-orient and up-date the knowledge of the health personnel on the management of SCD. It is expected that these health personnel would form core teams in their respective districts for comprehensive management of sickle cell disease. They would equally train other health personnel in both primary and secondary health facilities, so as to ensure that the proper management of sickle cell disease trickles to the grassroots. “We want health personnel in all health centres to be ready to provide adequate and professional care for babies who would be found with sickle cell, when the new-born screening rolls out nationwide,” Mr Eddie Tettey, Vice President of the foundation and programme administrator of the NNbSP, stated in an interview. He said the foundation’s expectation was that the new-born screening would be functional in all parts of the country by four years’ time. “Our main objective is to have a situation where everyone with SCD or its related conditions, in Ghana, is properly diagnosed and offered education, counselling and modern medical and psychosocial services,” Mr Tettey noted. It is difficult to tell the percentage of Ghana’s population that is currently living with sickle cell condition because, as Prof Frempong states: “we do not know how many of those born with the disease are still living.” Therefore, it is crucial for all Ghanaians to support the newborn screening initiative to ensure that children born with SCD receive adequate care and grow up to become healthy adults who can live longer than their predecessors. SCD is a dangerous condition and we must all help the Health Service, MOH, SCFG and other partners to manage the disease effectively and enable Ghanaians live healthy lives.

JUNIOR GRAPHIC IS MY BIBLE - JOEL (JG, SEPT 14-20, 2011, PAGE 6)

SIXTEEN-YEAR old Joel Boakye has been reading the Junior Graphic since 2003, when he was about seven years. He was then in class three at the Central International, now Central Lyceum, in Tamale. He told this paper that initially he was not aware of the paper until his father introduced it to him and encouraged him to read it. “Each week, my father would bring two copies home and guide me through it. We would read some of the articles together and then do the brain tests,” Joel stated when he, in the company of his daddy, visited the offices of Graphic in Tamale upon a request by the editorial team. Realising that Joel’s father, Mr Samuel Boakye came to the office regularly to acquire copies of the paper for his son, the editorial team invited Joel and his father for an interview. The elated Joel, who is a former student of Dahin Sheli JHS, waiting to proceed to SHS, carried along with him all the editions of the Junior Graphic since 2003, which he had been compiling anytime he finishes reading. “Junior Graphic is like a bible to me. I like reading it because it gives me a lot of knowledge, especially the one on ‘rack your brain’,” Joel stated, adding that he also likes reading news and other sections. Apart from being a faithful reader of this paper, Joel has made some contributions to the content of the paper. In the August 18-24, 2010, edition, Joel’s artwork was published on the “Colour me” column on page two of the paper. Master Joel expressed his wish that more of the pages in the paper could be in colour, because “children like colourful things.” He also urged the editor of the paper to maintain the ‘I’ll tell my story’ column and tell more facts about the environment and other subjects. The habitual reader said he had already begun to reap some benefits from reading the Junior Graphic and other materials, citing his performance in ‘The Spelling Bee’ contest. Master Joel contested in ‘The Spelling Bee’ in 2010 and progressed from the inter-schools and inter-regions to the national level, where he fell out in the final stages. He attributed his success at the contest to his reading habit, explaining that it has helped in building his language and spelling prowess. He entreated other young people to read the Junior Graphic and other literary materials, because, in his opinion, “reading takes you to places you have never been to.” Joel’s father mentioned that he introduced his child to the paper because he realised it contained interesting writings and some information on examination questions and answers. Mr Boakye said he usually bought two copies each of the paper so that, whiles his young lad reads to his hearing, he too could follow the article in the copy he was holding. “Sometimes after reading portions like the news in brief, I’ll ask him to rewrite it from his mind in a separate paper and he always did so very well,” he stated. Mr Boakye, who believes that parents have a part to play in helping their children generate interest in reading, said apart from JG, he had been encouraging Joel to read other newspapers and literature, because “reading gives depth knowledge and builds language and articulacy.” During their visit, the proud father and son had the opportunity to interact with the Northern Zonal Manager of the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL), Mr Michael Kofi Baga. The manager praised the young chap for his reading habit, but heaped more commendations on his father for being the one who nurtured his son to appreciate reading. “You are not wasting your money. You are investing it prudently and you would surely reap the benefits with time,” he stated.

REHABILITATION OF TAMALE WATER SYSTEM UNDERWAY (DG, SEPT 9, 2011, PAGE 23)

THE Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) has commenced the implementation of the Subsequent Year Investment Programme (SYIP), which seeks to overhaul some components of the water supply system in the Tamale metropolis. The SYIP, which would span a period of two years, is designed to improve the water supply system in the sprawling city in order to meet the increasing demand for potable water. Under the project, the contractor – China Jiangsi Corporation – would replace weak pipelines, extend services to low income communities and rehabilitate the existing distribution network. The Northern Regional Communications Officer of the GWCL, Nicholas Nii-Abbey told the Daily Graphic in an interview that the SYIP forms part of the Urban Water Supply Project being funded by the World Bank and other partners. He said one of the objectives of the project is to tighten the various loopholes in the distribution system to reduce the extent to which water goes waste or is tapped illegally. This is not the first time that the GWCL is making efforts to improve water supply to Tamale and its environs, since the establishment of the Dalun Water System (DWS) in 1972. In 1999, the DWS, which was initially having a production capacity approximating 2.8 million gallons, underwent several rehabilitation works, including the installation of additional low lift pumps, provision of new booster stations and the laying of new transmission and distribution pipelines. In 2008, another project was undertaken to expand the production capacity from 19,560 cubic metres, that is about 4.5 million gallons, to 44,560 cubic metres or 10 million gallons. Major works that were carried out under this project included the installation of three new low lift pumps, the construction of new water treatment works and reservoirs and the laying of new transmission lines from Dalun to Tamale. Currently, the GWCL has the capacity to produce about 45,000 cubic metres or about 10 million gallons of water per day to serve Tamale and its environs if its plants are to operate to its optimum capacity. However, the GWCL produces about 6.5 million gallons per day to serve the Tamale area, including Yendi, since the plant is being operated at about 70 per cent of its capacity. Meanwhile, the daily demand for water within the Tamale is estimated at a little over 40,000 cubic metres. According to Nii-Abbey, the current production levels meet the demand, but noted that about 50 per cent of the water produced is unaccounted for. “It is either people are illegally tapping the water without paying for it or that there are damages in the distribution system which has led to wastage or a combination of both,” he explained.

RADIO PRESENTER DONATES TO CHILDREN'S HOME (DG, SEPT 9, 2011, PAGE 23)

A POPULAR radio presenter in Tamale, Mr Gideon Kofi Adarkwah has donated a quantity of assorted items to the Nhoyini Children’s Home in Tamale as part of his birthday celebrations. The items, valued at over GH¢500, included a bag of rice, detergents, toiletries, used clothing, shoes and cartons of fruit juice. Mr Adarkwah, who is the host of the drive time and other programmes on Diamond fm, chalked 25 recently and decided to mark the event at the children’s home. He told the Daily Graphic that he chose to undertake this philanthropic activity to play his part towards supporting the disadvantaged in society. “I decided not to organise a party as many usually do, but to visit the orphanage to interact with the disadvantaged children and give them my widow’s might,” he stated. He praised some of his friends who supported his initiative by donating some of the items and joining him to do the presentation. The supervisor of the orphanage, Ms Augustina Quainoo commended the radio show host for his gesture and gave the assurance that the items would be well utilised. She said in spite of support from various organisations, the home was still faced with several challenges, especially with regards to feeding the inmates, and therefore entreated other philanthropists and institutions to extend a hand of support to the home.

IMPROVING MATERNAL HEALTH - EFFORTS BY TAMALE TEACHING HOSPITAL (PAGE 11, DG, SEPT 6, 2011)

IMPROVING the health of women remains very crucial to the health of the entire population and this explains why the United Nations includes this in its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Goal four of the MDGs is directed towards “reducing by three quarters the ratio of women dying in childbirth.” How each nation is working to attain these goals remains essential because, as the former UN Secretary-General, Busumburu Kofi Annan, once stated: “It is not in the UN that the MDGs will be achieved. They have to be achieved in each of its member states, by the joint efforts of their governments and people.” The Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH), being the only one of its kind in Northern Ghana is expected to play a key role in reducing maternal and child deaths in the country. Apart from being a major referral point for emergency cases, it also boasts of a number of specialists, including obstetric gynaecologists and paediatricians, who can provide comprehensive maternal and child care. The provision of maternal care at the TTH has, however, encountered challenges over the years and this is evidenced in the situation where mothers and their babies are compelled to use the floor due to the lack of space. In the wake of increased patient numbers, the labour, maternity and gynaec wards have been overwhelmed, leading to some instances of poor service delivery. Recent statistics indicate that the TTH records about 7000 deliveries in a year and about 12-15 per cent are through caesarean operations. In many cases, women with labour and abortion-related complications are brought to the facility when their condition has worsened and not much can be done to save them. In 2007, the hospital recorded 74 maternal deaths. There was a significant reduction in the number of these deaths to 54 and 52 in 2008 and 2009, respectively. In 2010, 33 incidents of maternal deaths were recorded, indicating a considerable decline, in spite of increasing number of births. Eclampsia, unsafe abortion, postpartum haemorrhage, severe anaemia and sepsis and septicaemia have been identified as the main causes of these deaths. Although one can observe a decline in the number of maternal deaths at the TTH, it is still regrettable that women should continue to lose their lives in an attempt to procreate. According to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the TTH, Dr Ken Sagoe, the incidences of maternal deaths have remained a concern for the management. “We are not comfortable with these deaths, which we have been working hard over the years to avoid. Many of them are as a result of delayed referrals,” he lamented, adding that the pressure on the facility keeps increasing thereby distorting any progress made. Dr Sagoe however thinks that the difficulties facing the maternity, labour and gynae wards would minimise greatly when the rehabilitation of the hospital is completed. In May 2010, the rehabilitation and expansion of the TTH commenced after the government secured funds from the government of the Netherlands to support the project. The first phase of the project, which involves the construction of a new four-storey block at the eastern side of the hospital, is at the completion stages. Among the units to be housed at the new block are an improved labour and delivery wards and more operating theatres. “The issue of overcrowding would be no more because there would be adequate space for the labour and maternity wards, as well as more theatres,” Dr Sagoe stated. Unfortunately, the problem with the labour and maternity wards does not only have to do with inadequate space, but also has everything to do with poor attitudes of some of the staffs. Whiles a number of the nurses conduct their duties professionally and show compassion when dealing with clients, a handful of them behave as if they were literally pulled from their comfort zones and forced into the wards. These poor attitudes have repeatedly attracted public displeasure and led to a situation where some clients rush to the press to express their frustrations over the way and manner they were treated. Certainly, the management of the TTH cannot be impressed about the situation where a few bad nuts tarnish the image of the entire nursing flock. “We have noted with concern these grey areas and we have repeatedly sounded a note of caution to our workers to be reminded each time about their unique roles,” Dr Sagoe stated. He said one thing he had learnt over his several years of medical practice was that “the frustrations of a single dissatisfied client can spread faster than the joy of a many satisfied clients.” “We have instituted a number of measures to check the professional conduct of our workers. We have also been holding in-service training to build their capacities to deliver as expected,” the CEO mentioned, adding that “we want our staff to understand that we are now a teaching hospital and must deliver to par.” The head of the labour and maternity wards, Dr David Kolbilla, however, entreats the public to have some considerations for the nurses, noting that they were constantly working under duress. “They are humans and they are bound to succumb to pressure sometimes,” he said. Fortunately for the TTH, it now has about 70 midwives out of over 700 nurses and this is a boost to its efforts to improve maternal care. It is imperative for the management of the TTH to strengthen its efforts towards improving maternal health because the health of our mothers, wives and sisters is inevitably linked to the health of the entire nation.

TAMALE RESIDENTS EXPRESS RAGE OVER IRREGULAR POWER SUPPLY (PAGE 18, SEPT 3, 2011)

DRAMA unfolded at the offices of the Volta River Authority (VRA) in Tamale this morning when a large number of people besieged the premises to express their frustrations over a series of irregular power supply in parts of the metropolis. Minutes after a team of police personnel restored order at the VRA’s premises, a high powered police delegation also followed to lodge their own version of the complaints over the erratic power supply at the barracks and police headquarters. At the time of going to press, a team of technical personnel were dispatched to the various locations to repair the faults, whiles management was locked up in the meeting discussing the way forward. The police delegation, led by Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Simon Denteh, who is in charge of communications in the Northern Region, also included the Northern Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Chief Inspector Ebenezer Tetteh, personnel of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and other personnel. ASP Denteh mentioned that in recent times there had been frequent on and offs at the barracks and headquarters and this impacted negatively on the work of the police. “When there is no power at the headquarters and other instalments, it has security implications on our work,” he noted. ASP Denteh said the VRA and the police must dialogue to ensure that all that is needed to be done to guarantee 24-hour electricity supply to all police installations in Tamale was done in due time. The Principal Security Officer of the VRA in the region, Mr Maxwell Kotoka and the Customer Service Supervisor, Mr Moro Ibrahim, who met with the police delegation, said the concerns of the police were legitimate. “We think that security is important and so we should not wait until there are negative developments before we act,” Mr Kotoka stated. He said the Area Manager would be informed after the meeting so that the necessary actions could be taken to restore lights to the police. Meanwhile, some of the residents who earlier swamped the VRA’s premises told the Daily Graphic that the erratic power supply was affecting them in several ways. “We kept ‘sal-la’ meat in the fridge and all that is gone bad. The other time my television developed a fault and the mechanic said it is the ‘light off and on’ that caused it,” Afa Mubarik, a resident of Tishigu stated. They said the VRA must be proactive in fixing the faults to avoid any future skirmishes. In response to these grievances, Mr Kotoka said the VRA could not be held responsible for many of the technical faults that resulted in unreliable power supply. “The fact is that anytime it rains, we record multiple problems with our installations due to the destruction caused to poles, transformers and wires,” he stated. He said the recent power failures that led to the agitations were traced to a faulty fuse that went off each time it was restored, adding that the technical team was on ground and would soon restore power to all affected areas.