|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
By Anthony Maliki, Abuja
The Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) continue to make major inroads in various communities in Nigeria with the release of its 2022 activities.
In a pamphlet titled “MSF IN NIGERIA, An Overview of Activities – 2022” to Apex News Exclusive, the international independent, medical humanitarian organisation said it undertook 15 projects in 11 states across Nigeria.
The states are Bauchi, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Ebonyi, Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, and Zamfara. There was also an emergency intervention in Kogi State.
Bauchi
MSF has responded to outbreaks of disease such as cholera and Lassa fever in Bauchi state since 2012, providing medical care, training medical staff and conducting health promotion.
Following an assessment of the medical needs in several local government areas (LGAs) of Bauchi state, MSF started the 53-bedcapacity Inpatient Therapeutic Feeding Centre (ITFC) in Kafin Madaki in July 2022 and three Ambulatory Therapeutic Feeding Centres (ATFCs) in Kafin Madaki, Kafin Liman and Miya since August 2022.
In October, MSF opened an inpatient paediatric department in Ganjuwa local government area that is made up of a triage area, an emergency room with two resuscitation beds, five intensive care beds, and an 18-bed main ward, and serves patients from Ganjuwa and other areas in Bauchi State.
Benue
In Benue, MSF collaborates with the Ministry of Health to provide medical services including general outpatient consultations, sexual and reproductive health services, care for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, mental health counselling and health promotion for people who are internally displaced as well as for host communities.
In 2022, we provided care to 1,634 survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, most of who were displaced. MSF also supports the State Emergency Management Agency in providing displaced people with water and sanitation, non-food items and shelter across Benue state.
In Ortese camp for displaced people, we reached 14,827 people with 1,940,000 litres of trucked, treated water, the equivalent of 4.2 litres per person per day. Shelters for 1,878 households and over 100 units of latrines and showers were also constructed in Ortese.
Borno
Since mid-2018, MSF has been providing secondary level care through its 65-bed capacity paediatric hospital located at Gwange-III Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC) in Maiduguri.
We offer essential and secondary level healthcare services to children under 15 years old. The hospital’s capacity can be extended to 220 beds, if required,using tents to manage an increased volume of patients during the seasonal malaria peak or in response to a measles outbreak.
In Maiduguri, MSF also runs a 120-bed nutrition centre named Nilefa Kiji in the Kusheri area of the city. The centre provides inpatient and outpatient treatment for children under the age of 10 with severe acute malnutrition and moderate acute malnutrition with complications.
We can extend the capacity of the facility to 200 beds during the ‘lean season’ to respond to an influx of patients.
Following an analysis of the security situation, MSF suspended its activities in Gamboru/Ngala and Rann in May 2022 and finally took the difficult decision to close its activities in December 2022.
Cross River
MSF supported two outpatient facilities in Akamkpa Local Government Area of Cross River state, providing comprehensive medical care focusing on the reduction of morbidity and mortality of children under five years of age and mothers, through provision of primary healthcare services, basic emergency obstetric and newborn care, increasing community awareness, providing capacity building and referral systems for emergency and life-saving patient care.
Teams remain prepared to respond to any emergencies or disease outbreaks in the state.
Ebonyi
Following the outbreak of Lassa fever in 2018, MSF collaborated with the federal and state Ministries of Health (MoH) and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), providing technical support at the Alex Ekwueme Federal Teaching Hospital (AE-FUTHA) of Abakiliki.
MSF’s support includes reinforcement of MoH medical capacity through training, supporting case management during the peak season,providing Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) training and supply and community outreach activities.
In 2022, an MSF team trained 835 community health extension workers in 13 LGAs across the state to augment awareness on Lassa Fever. MSF also started two important research projects in collaboration with AE-FUTHA: One will test a new rapid diagnostic test for the diagnosis of Lassa fever and a multicentric study on outcomes and prognostic factors of the disease called LASCOPE.
Jigawa
MSF started its activities in Jigawa State in 2008 with a fistula project with support to the maternity at the Jahun General Hospital.
Over the years, the project evolved to provide comprehensive emergency maternal obstetrics and neonatal care (CEmONC), and support to the ministry of health in Jahun General Hospital for fistula repair. The 151-bed hospital has 56 post-delivery beds, 15 beds in the intensive care unit, 25 beds in the neonatal ICU, 10 pre-delivery beds, 4 delivery beds and 3 observation beds.
The fistula ward has 55 beds. From 2015, MSF broadened its intervention to support basic emergency maternal obstetrics and neonatal care (BEmONCs) in four primary health facilities in Jahun, Aujara, Miga and Taura. Services provided include ante-natal care, safe delivery, post-natal care, family planning and health promotion.
Kano
MSF activities in Kano began with support for the state in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the years, the project evolved into general outpatient department support, providing services at the PHC level at the Ungogo and Tarauni LGAs. The project also supports a 25 bed-capacity BeMONC service in Gwale LGA.
In 2022, the project expanded further, with incorporating two Ambulatory Therapeutic Feeding Centres (ATFCs) in Ungogo and Tarauni LGA and started the first 50 bed-capacity ITFC model in the state in September.
Katsina
MSF is working with the Ministry of Health to prevent illness and malnutrition and reduce mortality and morbidity among children with acute malnutrition. MSF is working in eight centres across three local government areas: Jibia, Katsina, and Mashi.
Due to the high number of malnutrition patients coming to Dr. Yusha’u Armaya’u Maternal and Paediatric Health Facility in Kofar Sauri, MSF increased capacity of the malnutrition unit to 150 permanent beds and up to 450during peak periods. In 2023, MSF is starting two ambulatory therapeutic feeding centres (ATFCs) in the Mashi local governmental area. The ATFCs are managed by the Ministry of Health, while MSF supports capacity building, incentives for Ministry of Health staff, building infrastructure, water, sanitation, and hygiene, and some supplies.
Besides, MSF plans to replicate this model in the Rimi local governmental area and also collaborating with the Ministry of Health to start programs for sexual violence care in Kofar Sauri, in Katsina local government area.
Kebbi
MSF began supporting the Kebbi state government in March 2022.
MSF supports inpatient and outpatient treatment for children with severe and moderate acute malnutrition at the Maiyama general hospital and three primary health care centres in Maiyama and Bagudo local government areas.
MSF increased the number of beds in the inpatient treatment centre at the Maiyama General from 10 to 50 to care for the many children with malnutrition arriving at the centre. The capacity of the centre can be expanded to 100 beds as needed during the peak malnutrition season.
Sokoto
MSF has worked at Sokoto Noma Children’s Hospital since 2014, providing reconstructive surgery, as well as nutritional care, mental healthcare and physiotherapy.
The team also carries out noma awareness training sessions and outreach activities.Noma is a preventable, non-contagious and treatable disease that affects people living in poverty, especially young children.
It starts as an inflammation of the gums, but spreads rapidly, destroying facial tissues and bones. If left untreated, up to 90 per cent of people affected will die, usually within a short time.
Those who survive are left with severe facial disfigurement that can make it hard to eat, speak, see or breathe. Survivors often face stigma because of their disfigurement.
Since the start of MSF’s surgical programme, it has provided 1,066 surgeries for 717 patients. In 2022, surgeons performed 165 surgeries for 95 patients. All services are provided free of charge.
In March 2022, MSF started supporting a 40-bed inpatient therapeutic feeding centre in Sokoto Specialist Hospital and admitted 994 children with severe acute malnutrition. As well as malnutrition treatment, MSF teams provide health promotion and psychosocial activities for children and their caregivers.
Zamfara
MSF has worked in Anka since 2010, running a paediatric unit, including an inpatient therapeutic feeding centre, an intensive care unit and an isolation unit, to support the Ministry of Health.
MSF also provides outpatient consultations for displaced people and host communities, including malnutrition treatment, sexual and reproductive healthcare, care for victims of sexual and gender-based violence, and mental healthcare. MSF also runs outpatient therapeutic feeding centres in Anka, Bukkuyum and Talata Mafara local government areas in support of the Ministry of Health.
In March 2022, MSF started supporting another inpatient therapeutic feeding centre in Talata Mafara general hospital.
Additionally, MSF supports 22 primary healthcare facilities across the four local government areas of Anka, Gummi, Shinkafi and Zurmi, with a focus on treating patients with malaria, pneumonia and diarrhoea.
In late-2019, MSF launched a response in support of the Ministry of Health’s efforts to curb the malnutrition crisis in Shinkafi and Zurmi local government areas, with teams working in both inpatient and outpatient therapeutic feeding centres. Since then, MSF has extended its response to include general and intensive paediatric care, maternity services, care for victims of sexual and gender-based violence, trauma care, primary healthcare, mental healthcare, psychosocial support, health promotion activities and community engagement activities.
MSF refers patients in need of specialist care to tertiary-level hospitals. MSF and the Ministry of Health have 170 and 150 beds respectively in both Shinkafi and Zurmi general hospitals.
MSF also supports 10 primary healthcare centres in Shinkafi and Zurmi local government areas.
In May 2022, MSF launched an emergency malnutrition response in the Gummi area after conducting a mass screening for malnutrition. The emergency response included upgrading the laboratory at Gummi general hospital and setting up an inpatient therapeutic feeding centre and three outpatient therapeutic feeding programmes as well as a blanket supplementary feeding programme.In July 2022, following an analysis of the security situation, MSF scaled down its activities in Anka, reducing the capacity of the paediatric unit from 120 to 40 beds
Kogi (Emegerncy Intervention)
Severe flooding in 2022 affected many parts of Nigeria, MSF’s emergency teams began supporting people displaced by floods in Ibaji, Idah and Kogi local government areas of Kogi state. Teams trucked drinking water into camps hosting displaced people and donated medicine and medical supplies to four primary health centres in Ibaji, Idah, and Kogi local government areas. In the first quarter of 2023, MSF has provided technical training to managers and medical staff in 10 primary health centres.
MSF is also providing water, sanitation, and hygiene support and rehabilitation to these centres in the aftermath of the floods.
