Ghana : Yellow fever death in Northern Region, vaccination drive planned

[Ronan Kelly]

New Case Of Yellow Fever Confirmed In NR


Joseph Yieleh Chireh - Health MinisterHealth authorities in the Northern Region have confirmed a new case of yellow fever in the region.

This follows laboratory findings that attributed the death of a 16-year-old-boy from Dikatami in the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District to yellow fever infection.

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Briefing the Daily Graphic, the Deputy Regional Director in Charge of Public Health, Dr Jacob Mahama, said on August 20, 2011, the boy reported at a clinic in the Sawla District with complaints of fever, chills, vomiting and abdominal pains.

He said after examinations, he was referred to the Wa Hospital in the Upper West Region, where he died the next day.

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Dr Mahama said the World Health Organisation (WHO) had recommended that there should be a reactive vaccination in various parts of the country to prevent the spread of the disease.

He said, in the Northern Region, the vaccination would take place in six districts that have been considered as high risk due to their proximity to Wa and Cote d?Ivoire, where there has been an outbreak of yellow fever.

The districts are the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba, Bole, Central Gonja, West Gonja, East Gonja and West Mamprusi.

He said already the region had received the vaccines and had distributed them to the districts, pending the commencement of the vaccination exercise from November 22 to 28, 2011.

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http://www.graphic.com.gh/dailygraphic/page.php?news=16689

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Ghana : Yellow fever death in Northern Region, vaccination drive planned

Yellow fever vaccination starts in eight regions

Eight regions in the country including Eastern are to begin a seven day vaccination exercise against yellow fever from today, November 22nd to Monday November 28th.

The programme which is covering 43 districts will be carried out in the Western, Central, Ashanti, Northern and Eastern regions, the rest are, Brong Ahafo, Greater Accra and Upper West region.

The Deputy Eastern Regional Director of Health Services, Dr. George Bonsu, said this in an interview with GBC?s Radio Ghana in Koforidua.

He stated that about four hundred and ninety five thousand people will be vaccinated against the disease in more than six out of the 21 districts in the region. They are Birim South, Birim Central, Kwahu North, Upper Manya, lower Manya and Suhum-Kraboa-Coaltar.

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http://www.gbcghana.com/index.php?id=1.669752

[Pathfinder]

Re: Ghana : Yellow fever death in Northern Region, vaccination drive planned

Yellow Fever Outbreak

<!-- Start Shareaholic LikeButtonSetTop --><!-- End Shareaholic LikeButtonSetTop -->By Arthur Kobina Kennedy, MD School of Medical Sciences ? University of Cape Coast

In the wake of the Yellow fever outbreak, the Ghana Health Service has announced a prevention plan based on vaccination for certain districts. In a nation where there are laws against causing fear and panic, one must be careful when speaking out about such things.

However, the public interest requires that we discuss some of these things candidly, even at the risk of causing a little fear.

Yellow fever is a viral infection which causes severe symptoms and signs, including fever, headache, abdominal pain and bleeding, and leaves up to half of those infected dead. The disease has different transmission cycles in the jungle, savannah and in cities. It affects men more than women.
Every year around the world, according to both the World Health Organization and the US Centers for Disease Control, about 200 thousand people are infected with approximately 30 thousand deaths.

Ghana is an endemic country. Last week, according to Joy FM, an Accra based radio station, ?Ghana Health Service has embarked on a free National Immunization exercise in 43 districts, which will end next Monday.

? Furthermore, according to the authorities, ?In areas where cases have been recorded, children from One year and above will be vaccinated.? Elsewhere, one has to be ten years and older to be vaccinated. I am convinced that the strategy for dealing with this epidemic needs to be revised.

First, given the fact that someone from one of the areas where the infection has been recorded can get on a vehicle and end up anywhere in Ghana, limiting the vaccinations to only a few districts does not make sense. Every day, hundreds of people get on vehicles in the Upper West end up in Accra.

Hundreds of people in Accra make return journeys to Cape Coast on a daily basis. How can we vaccinate people in Accra and not Cape Coast? How can we vaccinate only people in certain parts of Accra and not all of Accra?

Indeed, since the exercise was initiated, there have been at least two unconfirmed cases in Cape Coast. If any of these cases are confirmed, it will expose the inadequacy of our strategy for dealing with this epidemic.

More...

http://ghanaian-chronicle.com/features/yellow-fever-outbreak/