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Beautiful ambiance, gentle breeze, neat environment, singing birds on lined trees along lush lawns of a large expanse, is a brief description of the entrance of the Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Aro, Abeokuta.

The description however fails to suggest to a lay man what business goes on in this beautiful compound though the serenity is key to success of the activities within the facility.

Time was 10.30am on a bright Saturday.  The giant gate was opened. Well kitted guards ushered in a coastal bus conveying a group of tourists into the hospital.

The dead silence of the premises was interrupted by the engine roaring through the gate house.  Numbering about 30, the travellers were on a study mission to the facility after an earlier permission.

Received by the facilitator of the trip and consultant at the hospital, Dr. Benjamin Olley, the participants’ minds were prepared on what to expect and how to conduct themselves while the visit lasts.  Olley, who lectures at the Psychology Department of the premiere University of Ibadan took the students down memory lane. “The Lantoro, Abeokuta annex was the first asylum in Nigeria where soldiers who returned from the World War I were taken for treatment and rehabilitation.  It was later upgraded and this hospital was founded here at Aro”.

The university Don continued that “Professor Thomas Adeoye Lambo founded Aro in the 1940s.  Lambo, once a Deputy Director at the World Health Organisation (WHO), worked with other scholars including Professor Benjamin Kayode Osuntokun who used to be the Provost of the institution, Professor T. A. Akindele now late, among several others that ensured a good standard which is still being maintained today”.

Conducting the participants round the hospital, Olley briefed them about the management of the institution.  “Professor Gboyega Ogunlesi is the current Provost and Aro is the name of the host community, the name does not mean insanity”, he said. The psychologist stated further that “patients are either in-patients who reside in the wards or out-patients who come from their homes for treatment”.

Olley continued that “mental illness is a long time chronic illness and our psychiatric facilities in Nigeria are not adequate”. According to a record available on the internet, 572 patients were treated for depressive illness at Aro in 1980.  These included 91 cases in which diagnoses other than depression were initially made due to the overwhelming somatic and psychoneurotic symptoms which totally eclipsed the primary depressive symptoms.

Next, the participants visited the wards housing psychotic patients.  Strange to the majority of the visitors, patients in the wards were not in chains as anyone would have imagined and no cage was sighted as patients were seen going about their normal routines, some were even seen playing table tennis.

A nurse on duty in the male ward confirmed that the patients are cooperative and they always maintain peace.  “Before you came in, two of them have been given trial leave and are back to their various homes but placed under observation”, she said.

When asked how she would respond to a violent act of any of the patients she said “in case of any violent act, the nurse on duty must move swiftly towards the patient and talk to him.  Talk therapy must be the first step before administering any injection if need be”.  She added that “other patients in such cases often team up to help the nurses to caution any patient going violent”.

After visiting the ward, participants on the trip attended a training facilitated by clinical psychologists from the hospital. Facilitating the first lecture, Mr. Bayo, a clinical psychologist told the students that “we do the talking therapy here, our job starts where the doctors’ stop”, he said, continuing that “we have the drug abuse unit, we handle schizophrenia and what we have here are bi-polar affective disorder and some other disorders”.

Enlightening the students further, he highlighted five stages of addiction which include exposure stage, experimental stage, regular usage stage, tolerance stage and withdrawal stage, all these stages happen in circles, he said”.

Addressing the students at the second lecture, another clinical psychologist, Mr. Sodehinde also took the students down memory lane, stating that “Aro Neuropsychatric Hospital started operation on the 13^th April 1944 at Lantoro, Abeokuta annex which was formerly the Local Government Prisons and after 10 years there was the need to upgrade and the hospital began here at Aro”. Sodehinde stated further that “we gathered that Professor Lambo and his wife planted most of these trees you see here today and in December 1972 this facility was again upgraded to become a World Health Organisation’s Collaborative Centre For Research and Training in Mental Health.

He also listed cases of mental illness.  According to the clinical psychologist, mental illness is caused by genetic loading, drug addiction, stress, accidents among other factors.  He however advised people to reduce stress by all means.

After a brief objective test conducted by Dr. Olley to test the participants’ knowledge about the visit, the visitors were made to have brief interaction with some of the patients.

The last point of call was the Drug Abuse Treatment Education Research Centre (DATER) section.The phase one of the section handles de-intoxication of patients while the second phase takes care of actual treatment and rehabilitation plan. “Here, we don’t administer drug, we detoxify, treat, rehabilitate and talk to the patients”, said a staff on duty at the DATER section.

After the excursion, Dr. Benjamin Olley encouraged the participants to continue maximizing every opportunity they have to learn. “The difference between achievers and non-achievers is attitude, continue with the attitude and whenever you have the opportunity to learn, maximise and keep it up”, he counseled.

Relaying her experience on the trip, a participant, AduragbemiOdetunde said the trip was worth the while. “My knowledge about clinical psychology was broadened. I have been reading the theoretical aspects but today I had the opportunity to talk with patients to further get enlightened on those symptoms I read about”, she said.

Another participant, AdetutuOyeleke said “the trip is enlightening, I learnt more than what I have been reading about psychosis. I am more exposed on the subject than before”.  One other participant who would not forget the experience in a hurry is OlurotimiBalogun.  “The trip is an unforgettable experience which encapsulates a lot I have read about psychosis.  It offers a practical approach and I specifically gained a lot while we interacted with patients”, Balogun said.

Participants on the trip would have aligned with the saying that “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” if they had made real their earlier plan to visit the popular Olumo Rocks.  The plan was however aborted since the day was far spent.

“I believe Antiretroviral (ARV) drug is the sufficient grace of God for people living with HIV”.  These were the words of Frederick Adegboye who has lived with HIV for nine years.

Adegboye, a Journalist and activist spoke after a three-day training organised for female church leaders in Lagos.  The training titled “Strengthening Behaviour Change Communication Among Faith Based Female Leaders in Lagos State” was organized by Journalists Against AIDS (JAAIDS), Nigeria in collaboration with World Association for Christian Communication (WACC), Canada.

Adegboye who believes strongly that ARV drug was inspired by God and produced by scientists to assist people living with HIV said “ever since I knew my status, I have adhered to my drugs and I have not experienced any crisis in my health, I live just like any other person, I am even more healthy than when I didn’t know my status”, he said.

He however stated that HIV does not kill but opportunistic diseases and discrimination do when the patient is not properly handled or when the status is not known. “My drugs are very important to me and I just have to take them. In the Bible we read about Apostle Paul who wrote about his infirmity. God comforted him that His grace was sufficient for him (Apostle Paul). Today, I see ARV as God’s grace that is sufficient for people living with HIV.  I have lived with the virus for nine years now and with the drugs, I have been living normally, some of us would have been forgotten by now if not for the grace of God”, he said.  He also noted strongly that lie opportunistic diseases, discrimination is another killer, not the virus.

“When my result came out, I noticed that people changed their attitudes towards me.  The nurses who had hitherto been friendly just turned hostile, the disease is not as dangerous as discrimination, he said.

Speaking about the Law For The Protection Of People Living With HIV & AIDS, Adegboye said “the information has not been adequately disseminated.  Some of us did not even know about it until two years after itwas passed. You know in Nigeria also, the road to justice is very long, a case can take up to ten years and this is not good for the law”, he concluded.

Executive Director of JAAIDS, Olayide Akanni at the training advised counselors on HIV issues to observe the rule of confidentiality.  “A person who tests positive can only disclose to a trusted person.  Those disclosing are also humans with feelings and emotions too, it’s a challenge to them”.  She continued that “such information should be kept in confidence, counselors should support the patients in securing care, treatment and medical advise and be tactful in handling the issue. Allow the Holy Spirit guide you”, she advised the church leaders.

One of the coordinators of the training, Jessam Nwaigbo also encouraged persons living with HIV to take their health issues seriously.  “A positive person should even be more careful than someone who doesn’t know his or her status.  Such a person who tests positive should also go for confirmatory test. Patients should avoid mosquito bites and endeavor to observe enough rest”, she counseled.

Nwaigbo who is also on the staff of JAAIDS continued that “this training is to train female leaders in faith based organisations on stigma and discrimination in the church because we want them to be armour bearers to discuss these issues in other groups so that discrimination against people living with HIV can stop”.

In her own evaluation of the training, another member of the coordinating team, Olufunke Osindele said “the participants have told us what they are going to do after returning to their various bases, it is their work plans we are going to work with. We are not just training and leaving them, we are going to monitor them as well”.

Osindele continued that “This training is on a small scale, it is like training the trainers since we can not reach every body, so we trained people from selected churches to train their members who will also train other people in their various outreaches”. “We didn’t get to these churches directly, we went through the leaders of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) who nominated the churches”.

Speaking on the challenges encountered in organising such trainings, Osindele revealed that “there is the general challenge of funding, if we have adequate funding, this program will not just be for this selected people. We were able to train people from just five Local Government areas out of the 57 in Lagos State.If there is adequate funding, we would be able to reach other Local Government Areas who would go back to reach their churches”.

Also at the three day training were facilitators from the health sector, the media and civil society groups which include Dr. Oliver Ezechi from Nigeria Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), Dr. Fisher from Lagos State Action Committee on AIDS (LSACA), Monisola Ajiboye, Kolawole Ekanoye, Olayide Akanni, Executive Director, JAAIDS, Dr. Princess Olufemi-Kayode, Executive Director, Media Concern Initiative for Women and Children (MEDIACON), Mr. Lekan Otufodunrin, On-line Editor, The Nation Newspaper and Mr. Ben Adeeyo of JAAIDS.

The Lagos State government has criticised medical doctors in the State over the warning strike embarked upon to push their demands.

The State government has also said that the doctors’ action is tantamount to a blackmail targeted at protecting their personal interests in private hospitals across the State.

Speaking on behalf of the government, Special Assistant to the State governor Babatunde Fashola on Information and Strategy, Mr. Lateef Raji, addressing newsmen said that the doctors’ demands were uncalled for and that the State government was the first in the country to implement the Consolidated Medical Salary Scale (CONMESS) which they are now complaining about.

The doctors are also demanding that House Officers on grade levels 10 and 12 get teaching allowances which Raji said was not part of CONMESS.

According to the governor’s Special Assistant, “the doctors from our findings are just bent on going on strike, probably to protect personal investments in their poorly equipped private hospitals and that is what Lagosians should brace up for”.

He added that the government has willing hands that are ready to ensure that emergency services in Lagos Hospitals run and that the hospitals function.

The mouth is the most important part of the body after the face.

Though a lot has been done to keep good facial look but after securing attention through an inviting face, an offensive mouth odor could repel such contacts.

In every physical contact or meeting between humans, the face is the first point of attraction, after which, the mouth is exposed. So there is need for adequate care of the mouth.

Oral hygiene is commonly known as the process of maintaining your mouth and teeth, keeping your gums clean and healthy at all time and to prevent tooth and gum decay. Good oral hygiene includes brushing the teeth, flossing, cleaning the tongue, and visiting the dentist frequently.

Brushing the teeth regularly is a good preventive care, because it helps remove plaque and prevents the formation of tartar. When brushing, remember that it must be performed with a toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste at least three times a day, and if possible, after every meal and snacks. An effective brushing is one that cleans each outer tooth surface, inner tooth surface, and the flat chewing surfaces of the back teeth. More so, brushing the tongue along with the teeth is very important, as it can remove bacteria and fungi that can lead to serious dental problems and bad breath.

Keep in mind that the toothbrush also wears out and must be replaced after three months of constant use. Habitual brushing is no doubt an important part of oral hygiene, but of course, this can’t be enough as there are some areas of the mouth that a regular toothbrush cannot reach. That is the reason flossing is best recommended, as it can reach between the teeth to clean all areas of the teeth. At the same time, it also helps to strengthen the gums.

It has been said that practicing oral hygiene can also be influenced by lifestyle and diet choices. This is true.  In fact, both smoking and chewing tobacco are proven to be really damaging and harmful to oral health. Some foods can be detrimental too, like those that are high in sugar, as it contributes to the formation of cavities. Common acidic foods such as soda, fruit juices and vinegar can also harm the tooth enamel and can also contribute to the formation of cavities. So, instead of taking these foods, start eating foods that promise good oral hygiene such as dairy products, fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, green tea and water to attain a mouth that looks and smells healthy.

Finally, keeping oral hygiene has effects for the entire body. With proper brushing and flossing, no doubt oral hygiene may be maintained. Moreover, possible oral health problems such as bacterial pneumonia, cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and complications of diabetes may be avoided.

*Comments on this article should be directed to the Editor -2348033374017, 2347080305976

Health is wealth is a general saying. Equally, health and wealth are major requirements for a fulfilled life.

While many have spent their wealth in exchange for health, so many others have acquired health without the corresponding wealth which may someday make them unhealthy.

However, these and other reasons have been the propelling force of a Malaysian health organisation; Creative Network International (CNI) which has recently landed in Nigeria to make Africa’s most populous nation its operational hub on the continent.

Speaking at the organisation’s maiden press conference in Lagos, Sales Support Manager of CNI in Lagos, Mrs. Tokunbo Aiyemomi said “the organisation has ventured in Africa and Nigeria is its first point, largest market and base of operation”.  She added that “CNI has been around for 22 years and it has over 500 products and such products are used daily by the average person, making it a popular brand. However, CNI is quoted on the Main Stock Exchange Market in Malaysia for over 15 years and that tells of its strength and capital base”, Aiyemomi explained.

However, Aiyemomi did not fail to talk about the level of poverty in Nigeria and other African countries which CNI has also come to address.  “CNI is not just about promoting the health of Nigerians but also around to empower Nigerians.  There are so much poverty in the land, thousands of graduates are churned out of schools yearly without any hope of employment and CNI ‘s introduction into Nigeria is to generate enough income to enable Nigerians to be comfortable through our Multilevel Marketing structure”, she assured.  She also stated that CNI has plans to reach out to Cote D’voire, Ghana, Togo and other African nations soon.

Some distributors and consumers of the products were available to testify to the wonder of CNI products. “I used to sweat profusely in the night with pains all over my body; I thought I was going to die even after visiting the hospital. Some people called it ‘Christian mothers’ sickness’, some others said it was a sign of menopause, I even thought at a time it was spiritual attack.  I was introduced to a product of CNI called Gold Soya and that was the end of the ailment”, said Mrs. Faith Emere, a Lagos based nurse and CNI products distributor.

“I didn’t believe in all these Asian products initially but then I couldn’t stand upright for long. After taking a lot of local herbs, sometimes I don’t sleep at nights. Some of those nights, I converted to prayer vigils which later started affecting me. Someone introduced me to a CNI product called Health Pack which I have renamed ‘Life Pack’, then I started having relief and now I am alright”, narrated Pastor Tony Olise who has found the products helpful.

After just a year in the Nigerian market, CNI seems to have come to stay with over 3,000 distributors. “We have about 3,000 distributors and every month the company pays a stipend amount back as incentives and bonuses.  If we have more people we would comb the nooks and crannies of the country with the products and benefits CNI has brought to Nigeria” said Mrs. Fawehinmi, the Business Support Manager.

Another distributor, Sister Omena added that “CNI is a product sent by God to Nigeria. As a distributor, I give out these food supplements free of charge for people to use and pay me later if they find it working and amazingly these people always return my money and even buy more”. Omena continued that “life enzymes is my number one product, I have given it out to someone with kidney ailment, I went on-line to read the prescriptions and I administered it accordingly to the already frail patient who at the time had symptoms of the disease. Today the man is alright driving round Lagos”.

Fawehinmi, answering questions on the possible side effects of the products said “they are food supplements and just like fruits, they do not give any side effects. You may feel hungry after taking fruits and then you eat, that is a reaction and similar to what CNI products could give, but ultimately, no side effects, they are food supplements extracted from natural plants.”

The Business Support Manager however explained how the food supplements are useful to HIV patients. “CNI products do not curve HIV.  HIV in itself is not a killer but such that opens door for killer diseases that eventually have the capacity to kill the patients. They are food supplements to work on the body to improve the quality of the antibodies, a lot of patients of HIV die because of poor nutrition which depletes the body immunity to opportunistic diseases while a lot of patients are living positively. Patients on CNI products would definitely live positively and we advise them not to leave the supplements after feeling alright”.

CNI was established in 1989 in Malaysia and it is represented in 10 countries. In 2010, Nigeria became its 11th base while the Lagos office is planned to coordinate other African countries very soon.

For any community that rely on the mass media to tell them what matters most, any issue that is not in the news probably does not exist. And if that issue happens to be Hepatitis B-a highly infectious viral disease that affects about 350million people globally and 19million Nigerians, then there’s a huge problem.

InNigeria, Hepatitis B is a serious public health concern. But it is hardly ever in the news not withstanding that one out of every eighth person in the region is a carrier of the Hepatitis B virus which can lead to liver cancer and other forms of liver damage if not detected early and treated.

Ahead of the World Hepatitis Day scheduled( July 28), The Society for Gastroenterology and Hepatology in Nigeria (SOGHIN) in collaboration with Health Communication and Development Initiative (HCDI) and the World Hepatitis Alliance held a skills-building session and round table in Lagos for journalists on the disease.

With the theme Telling the Hepatitis Story: One Test, One Shot, One Hope ,the skills building session had two main objectives one of which is to enhance the capacity of journalists in Nigeria to contribute towards effective Hepatitis response through accurate, sustained and broad-based reporting of Hepatitis disease.

“We need a platform for journalists and physicians treating hepatitis to share concerns and synergise competencies that would help improve the quality of Hepatitis response inNigeriaand I think nothing can be more auspicious than this”, says Kingsley Obom-Egbulem, Creative Director, Health Communication and Development Initiative (HCDI).

“I am hoping that we would be able to promote a common understanding of the issues in Hepatitis management and examine how journalists can report these issues from an informed perspective and be able to sustainably articulate them as they affect Hepatitis control in Nigeria”, he added.

Obom-Egbulem, who is also Managing Editor, Nigerian Health Journal said the skills building session is also aimed at examining the role media advocacy could play in improving access to testing, treatment and vaccination as well as reducing Hepatitis related mortality.

“One of the ironies of living in developing climes like ours is that every disease is made to look like a terminal disease; people actually die not because the disease is indeed terminal but because they found themselves living in place where health priorities are misplaced and that swells the number of needless deaths and that is why we need to tell the Hepatitis story”, he says.

Obom-Egbulem said the choice of title for the roundtable was informed by an understanding that there is an effective way to make an issue known and that way is to tell it as a story.

“The Hepatitis story is indeed an untold story”, says Obom-Egbulem. “It is the story of a virus that affects about 20 million Nigerians and fewer than 5% of this population actually know what it is all about”, he added.

Explaining how important the role of the media is in raising the level awareness about Hepatitis, Obom-Egbulem said that, news is not what happened or what people say it is. “News is what the journalist says it is; if Hepatitis not news to the journalists or his editor, then it cannot be news and you cannot talk about creating awareness about Hepatitis without those who determine what news is.”

With the stage set it was time to expose journalists to issues underlying Hepatitis such as Epidemiology of Hepatitis inNigeria, The Science of Hepatitis Prevention, Clinic Matters: issues of adherence, drug resistance, availability and access to treatment, periodic monitoring of vital signs, duration of treatment, cost, treatment failure and drug sensitivity / interaction, managing Hepatitis co-infections, etc.

“Hepatitis is a Latin word referring to the liver. It is an inflammation of the liver caused by viruses, bacteria, drugs and other toxins”, says Dr. Hameed Oladipuo, consultant Gastroenterologist and Hepatologist and

“Hepatitis B and C are the most popular of the Hepatitis viruses in Sub-Saharan Africa and it is an infection which can lead to a terminal disease if not detected and treated early”, says Hameed who is also member of the Society of Gastroenterology and Hepatology in Nigeria (SOGHIN).

He added that Hepatitis B is caused by infection with Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) in childhood which the body fails to clear and this result in chronic illness that lasts more than six months and in some cases for life. At this stage, “Chronic Hepatitis B can result in cirrhosis (which is the hardening of the liver), liver cancer, liver failure and ultimately death even though it can be treated when detected before the symptoms show up”.

Another resource person at the programme, Dr. Olufunmilayo Lesi, Consultant physician and Gastroenterologist at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) also provided vital information about the disease which she says has been relegated on the priority list of public health concerns.

“Hepatitis B is highly contagious and is 50-100 times more infectious than HIV and the average infection inNigeriais 13percent. It means that one out of every eight Nigerian is living with the virus”. The entire hall became silent when she revealed further that according to a survey, 20 percent of children are carriers of Hepatitis B virus.

“This is because the disease can also be spread through child-to-child transmission and mother-to-child transmission; and you wonder why no one is making an issue out of it and we are all talking about HIV/AIDS, when there is a more serious epidemic on our hand”.

Lesi added that there testing early for Hepatitis B and getting vaccinated remains a better way to responds to the epidemic and these are priorities that government must promote.

“There is a vaccine for Hepatitis B and its been available for about 40 years now; why are we not making it a priority to ensure mass screening and mass vaccination of people who have not been infected with the virus? Why are we still having cases of liver cancer and liver cirrhosis due to chronic Hepatitis B in the midst of available and effective treatment and vaccination?”,she wondered.

“I strongly believe the search for solutions to Dr. Lesi’s puzzle begins with putting Hepatitis B in the news and keeping it there; it is more than an issue for Word Hepatitis Day coverage alone”, argued Obom-Egbulem.

Continuing, Obom-Egbulem said that someone must take responsibility for opening up the space for Nigerians to talk about Hepatitis B and avoid complications such as liver cancer and liver cirrhosis. “If you see any working well there is always someone working it; someone must see it as a personal responsibility to inform Nigerians and help the media cover this epidemic, and that person is called you and me. Nigerians need not die of Hepatitis B if they know about it”, he added.

Adapted from : NIGERIAN HEALTH JOURNAL