June 22

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Inside June 22, 2018 .qxp_Layout 1 6/21/18 8:41 PM Page 5 06 WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH DAILY HERITAGE FRIDAY, JUNE 22, 2018 KIDDIES Corner Short stories for kids Money vs Family RAMA’S FAMILY is very big. Rama is a hard worker and he is the sole bread winner of the family. He has three kids, two sons and a daughter. He lives along with father and mother. Rama used to work too hard to feed his family. He works for more than 16 hours a day. The kids cannot see him as he will leave home early in the morning before they wake-up and reach home around midnight when kids would sleep every day. The entire family eagerly waits to spend quality time with him and the kids miss him so much. The children were too curious about Sundays as his father would spend the entire day with them. Unfortunately, to meet the increasing household expenses and educational expenses, Rama took a weekend job to work even on Sundays. The kids were very shattered and even Rama’s wife and parents too! The typical routine continued for several weeks and year passed. All the hard work of Rama earned a lot of benefits and he was offered promotion with attractive increment. The family moved to a new house, got better clothes and ate healthy foods. However, as usual, Rama continues to earn more and more money. One day his wife asked him ‘why are you running for money? We can be happy with what we have now.’ Rama replied, ‘I want to give the best available in the world to all of you and want you to stay happy always.’ Two years passed and Rama hardly spent time with his family. The children yearned to have their father at home. Meanwhile, the sincere efforts of Rama reaped him a fortune. He was offered partnership and share in profits. He continued to earn more and more wealth. Now, Rama’s family is one of the richest families in the city. They have all the facilities and luxuries. Still, Rama’s children strove to meet their father as he was hardly seen at home. His children turned teens and they are no more kids. Now, Rama earned enough wealth to provide a luxurious life to his next five generations. Rama’s family went to their beach house to spend their vacation. His daughter asked, ‘Dad will you please spend one day at home and stay with us here?’ Rama replied, ‘Yes darling, tomorrow for sure, I will join you for the lunch and be with you all for next few days. I’m tired of work and need refreshment!’ The entire family became very happy. Unfortunately, the next day, none in Rama’s family were alive as they were washed out in Tsunami! Rama was too busy even to hear the news about Tsunami. When he tried to reach his beach house, he saw sea and water everywhere and screamed for his family, He could not even find the dead bodies of his family. He can never have them again, cannot even see them and even by paying millions he cannot get them back to life! He remembered his wife’s words, ‘Why are you running for money? We can be happy with what we have now.’ Money can’t buy everything! TIME with AUNTIE AKUORKOR in the KITCHEN How to prepare gari fƆtƆ To be supervised by parents in the kitchen All hands should be washed well Ingredients: • Gari • Onion • Tomatoes • Pepper • Corned beef • Eggs Method: • Get your fire ready • Pour oil into the cooking saucepan • Chop vegetables • Add tomatoes, pepper and onions to oil • Stir to prevent burning • Add remaining vegetables to sauce • Add corned beef to sauce and stir • Add salt to taste • Sprinkle a little water on gari to moist it up Add gravy/stew to gari and mix well • Fry egg and serve with it Poems Betrayed By Me MUM TOLD me behind the veil of childhood laid the luxury of adulthood, an expanse of choices and a treasury of freedom with no limitations, an empire of abundance where my whims and caprices stand unchallenged. My teacher told me to focus on making A’s, and not to blow my intelligence away after frivolity and fun which will be in more glamorous packages and an even greater supply in the University. But here I am at 26, with nothing to be happy about, only regrets of pushing away my childhood, And not taking advantage of the exuberance my childhood days brought. Dear Children of the future, Savour the glorious of childhood moments because nothing beats the innocence it brings. By Stanley Toddison Wise I thought it wise to let the world roll by Believing their wealth was mine I thought it wise to be the smart one Giving excuses so as not to run errands I thought it wise to quickly prompt others When they made mistakes in public I thought it wise to let his guilt wash all over him While I throw my hips about and walk away I thought it wise to grow in my own style Avoiding corrections and living my life. I thought it wise to just carry my errs and forgive no offender I thought it wise to live knowing that life had all that. While I thought, life was ready to teach me that Hard work breaks no bones Humility is one’s chance to greatness. By Sakaa Adjei- Anim
Inside June 22, 2018 .qxp_Layout 1 6/21/18 8:41 PM Page 6 Some common health tips 1. Answer phone calls with the left ear. 2. Don't take your medicine with cold water. 3. Don't eat heavy meals after 5 p.m. 4. Drink more water in the morning, less at night. 5. Best sleeping time is from 10pm to 4 a.m. 6. Don’t lie down immediately after taking medicine or after meals. 7. When phone's battery is low to last bar, don't answer the phone, because the radiation is 1,000 times stronger. WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH DAILY HERITAGE FRIDAY, JUNE 22, 2018 &Env. Ghana declared trachoma free by WHO GHANA HAS been adjudged the first country in the World Health Organisation's (WHO) African Region to achieve the milestone of elimination of trachoma. WHO has, therefore, commended Ghana for having eliminated trachoma as a public health problem, two decades after the World Health Assembly resolved to tackle the leading infectious cause of blindness. The announcement comes the day after a commitment from Pfizer, the manufacturer of Zithromax (azithromycin) to extend their donation programme for the antibiotic until 2025, if required, to finish the task of global trachoma elimination. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said “It’s been 20 years since the global health community committed to eliminating trachoma worldwide." “Although there’s more work to do elsewhere, the validation of elimination in Ghana allows another previously heavily-endemic country to celebrate significant success.” Mr Kwaku Agyemang-Manu, Minister of Health said “This success is a result of a tremendous amount of hard work by thousands of health, education and development workers to improve the lives of individuals with trachoma and their families.” “The Government of Ghana is enormously grateful to its staff and to the many partners that have joined forces with us to eliminate trachoma and the cycle of poverty it triggers.” Lessons from Ghana The global trachoma community learnt a lot from Ghana’s experience. Innovations pioneered there include; the use of height-based dosing for azithromycin; systematic active case-searches for trichiasis involving door-to-door, communityby-community fieldwork; and, intensive counselling of patients found to have trichiasis with an offer of immediate surgery, which produced considerable improvement in surgical uptake. “Success in Ghana is a result of the strong leadership at all levels, implementation of the full SAFE strategy right from the outset, strong collaboration between Ghana Health Service and its many partners, and integration at lower levels of programme delivery, including; community ownership,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “Hearty congratulations are deserved for this achievement.” Trachoma was identified in the 1950s as the most important cause of blindness in Ghana. By the 1990s, the disease was known to persist as a significant public health problem in the Northern and Upper West Regions. There were about 2.8 million people at risk of trachomatous blindness nationally, with an estimated 13 000 people suffering from trichiasis. Elimination plan In 2000, the Ministry of Health and Ghana Health Service set up a national Trachoma Elimination Programme. Ghana’s Trachoma Elimination Programme implemented the WHO-recommended elimination strategy, SAFE, which comprises Surgery for trichiasis, Antibiotics to clear infection, Facial cleanliness, and Environmental improvement to reduce transmission. Trichiasis surgery was provided at no cost, a critical Ghana Health Service decision reflecting the socio-economic disadvantage of people with trichiasis and the impact of the condition on future earning potential. Azithromycin, donated by Pfizer through the International Trachoma Initiative, was distributed with support from FHI 360 (using funds from the United States Agency for International Development), The Carter Center, Sightsavers and other organisations. Facial cleanliness was promoted through community events, dramas, the school health education programme, radio messages and radio clubs. Environmental improvement was coordinated by Ghana’s Community Water and Sanitation Agency. Trachoma, a devastating eye disease caused by infection with the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis, is spread through contact with infective eye or nose discharges, either directly from person to person, or mediated by flies. Active (inflammatory) trachoma occurs as a result of infection, and is common among preschool-aged children. Man/woman ration Women are blinded up to four times as often as men, mainly due to their close contact with infected children and transmission is associated with poor sanitation and hygiene, which increase the availability of eye discharges and encourage the breeding of flies. In 1996, WHO launched the WHO Alliance for the Global Elimination of Trachoma by the year 2020 (GET2020). With other partners in the Alliance, WHO supported country implementation of the safe strategy and strengthening of national capacity through epidemiological assessment, monitoring, surveillance, project evaluation and resource mobilisation. Elimination of trachoma is inexpensive, simple and extremely cost effective, yielding a high rate of net economic return. Govt urged to invest in sickle cell screening of newborns BY HEALTH&ENVIRONMENT DESK THE AMERICAN Society of Hematology (ASH) is leading a campaign to fight sickle cell disease in Africa and has called on governments, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, to invest in newborn screening of the disease. During a webinar to mark this year’s Sickle Cell Awareness Day on Tuesday, June 19, President of the ASH, Dr Alexis Thompson, said the disease remains a major killer of infants and children in the developing world, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Sickle cell is an inherited, chronic disorder which can cause severe pain, stroke, organ failure, and other complications, including death. This year, approximately 300,000 babies around the world will be born with sickle cell disease. In West Africa, the World Health Organisation has estimated that between 5 to 16% of newborns die before age five. Also, in Ghana and other sub-Saharan African countries, an estimated 50 to 90% of infants born with the disease will die before their fifth birthday. The United Nations has designated sickle cell as a global public health problem. Dr Thompson said while simple public health measures have improved life expectancy of children born with the disease in the United States, elsewhere in Africa, the disease continues to be a major global public health issue. Dr Kwaku Ohene-Frempong of the Sickle Cell Foundation of Ghana said although Nigeria has the greatest burden of sickle cell in the world, with an estimated 15,000 babies are born every year with the disease, the statistics for Ghana is not any better. Speaking at the webinar on Ghana’s progress with infant screening for the disease, Dr Ohene-Frempong said: “Ghana established newborn screening •Fighting sickle cell from infancy is the best form of controlling the disease as a pilot programme in 1995, but we are able to check only about 4% of the babies born in Ghana because of government resources and the inability to scale up the screening.” He also mentioned the lack of data on sickle cell among infants as a major disincentive to draw government attention to the disease that worsens infant mortality in the country. “In Ghana, we’ve seen that simple public health measures, especially newborn screening, help children lead more normal lives. In the first 10 years of newborn screening, we made dramatic improvements in reducing sickle cell-related childhood mortality,” said Dr Ohene-Frempong. What is newborn screening The screening looks for developmental, genetic, and metabolic disorders in the newborn baby to enable steps to be taken before symptoms of the disease develop. Although the disease is rare, it can be treated if caught early. The types of newborn screening tests that are done vary from state to state. In addition to blood tests, screening for hearing loss and for critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) is recommended for all newborns. How the test is performed Screenings are done using the following methods Blood tests A few drops of blood are taken from the baby's heel. The blood is sent to a lab for analysis. Hearing test A health care provider will place a tiny earpiece or microphone in the infant's ear. Another method uses electrodes that are put on the baby's head while the baby is quiet or asleep. CCHD screen A provider will place a small soft sensor on the baby's skin and attach it to a machine called an oximeter for a few minutes. The oximeter will measure the baby's oxygen levels in the hand and foot.
Page 1 and 2: NO. 100722 FRIDAY, JUNE 22, 2018 PR
Page 3 and 4: WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH DAILY HERI
Page 5: WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH DAILY HERI
Page 10 and 11: Inside June 22, 2018 .qxp_Layout 1
Page 12 and 13: Inside June 22, 2018 .qxp_Layout 1
Page 14 and 15: WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH DAILY HERI

June 22

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?