HEALTH - The African Mirror

Apr

22

2021

France kicks off Europe’s vaccine donations to poorer states

COVID-19

FRANCE will soon become the first European Union member to send some of its own COVID vaccine supplies to developing countries via the international COVAX scheme, hoping others will join its bid to stave off new variants and compete with Russia and China. The French donation of an initial 100,000 doses of AstraZeneca's COVID vaccine this month, announced on Wednesday, is a boost for COVAX, which is backed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI). The COVAX facility aims to secure 2 billion vaccine doses for lower-income countries by the end of…

Apr

22

2021

By The African Mirror

Gambia eliminates trachoma, a leading cause of blindness worldwide

HEALTH

EMELINE WUILBERCQ GAMBIA has eliminated trachoma, one of the leading causes of blindness worldwide, the government has announced, after almost four decades of work to counter the disease. Trachoma, a bacterial eye infection that damages the eyelids and causes the eyelashes to turn inwards, is one of 20 neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) that the World Health Organization says disproportionately affect the world's poorest people. If not corrected with surgery, it can lead to irreversible vision loss and blindness. "Eliminating a disease on this scale is a massive achievement," said Simon Bush, director of NTDs at Sightsavers, an international charity working…

Apr

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Nigeria is neglecting social workers in the fight against COVID-19. Why it shouldn’t

HEALTH

IN current debates about managing and defeating COVID-19 in Nigeria, an issue that’s missing is the role that social workers should play. PRINCE AGWU -, Researcher at the Department of Social Work and the Health Policy Research Group, University of Nigeria, University of Nigeria UZOMA OKOYE, Professor of Social Work, University of Nigeria In many countries social workers have played a central role in efforts to contain the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and to manage its fallout. In China they are celebrated for their exceptional roles. The same is true in the US, Italy, New Zealand, and the UK.…

Jun

25

2021

By The African Mirror

WHO estimates COVID-19 boosters needed yearly for most vulnerable

COVID-19

FRANCESCO GUARASCIO THE World Health Organization (WHO) forecasts that people most vulnerable to COVID-19, such as the elderly, will need to get an annual vaccine booster to be protected against variants, an internal document seen by Reuters shows. The estimate is included in a report, which is to be discussed on Thursday at a board meeting of Gavi, a vaccine alliance that co-leads the WHO's COVID-19 vaccine programme COVAX. The forecast is subject to changes and is also paired with two other less likely scenarios. Vaccine makers Moderna Inc and Pfizer Inc, with its German partner BioNTech, have been vocal…

Jun

25

2021

By The African Mirror

Egypt to allow vaccinated travellers

COVID-19

EGYPT will allow travellers who have taken full doses of approved novel coronavirus vaccines to enter without taking a PCR test, the health ministry has announced. Travellers must present QR-coded certificates that they have received their full doses of one of six COVID-19 vaccines approved by Egypt and the WHO at least two weeks before their arrival. Those from countries impacted by coronavirus variants will be subject to a rapid test upon arrival, while all non-vaccinated travellers must present a PCR test. On Thursday, Egypt reported 466 new coronavirus cases, bringing its total to 278,761. However, officials and experts say…

Jun

25

2021

By The African Mirror

‘COVID tsunami’ hits Tunisia

COVID-19

TUNISIA is seeing a significant increase in COVID-19 cases, with intensive care wards almost full, according to an adviser to the government. "A COVID tsunami is hitting the country as the number of positive tests is very high, the number of deaths sometimes exceeds 100 per day, and intensive care beds are almost full," said Amenallah Messadi, a member of the independent scientific committee that advises the government. The committee called for extending hours of the night curfew, imposing a full lockdown in governerates where the epidemic is spreading widely, and barring all sports gatherings. After successfully containing the virus…

Apr

21

2021

By The African Mirror

U.S. will boost ‘Do Not Travel’ advisories to 80% of world

COVID-19

DAVID SHEPARDSON THE U.S. State Department says it will boost its "Do Not Travel" guidance to about 80% of countries worldwide, citing "unprecedented risk to travellers" from the COVID-19 pandemic. The State Department already listed 34 out of about 200 countries as "Level 4: Do Not Travel," including places like Chad, Kosovo, Kenya, Brazil, Argentina, Haiti, Mozambique, Russia and Tanzania. "This update will result in a significant increase in the number of countries at Level 4: Do Not Travel, to approximately 80% of countries worldwide," the department said in a statement. Getting to 80% would imply adding nearly 130 countries.…

Apr

21

2021

By The African Mirror

Egypt to purchase 20 million doses of vaccine

COVID-19

EGYPT has agreed to purchase 20 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine produced by China's Sinopharm and expects to receive a batch of 500,000 shots this month, its health ministry said on Tuesday. The agreement boosts vaccination efforts in Egypt, which has a population of 100 million and has so far received a total of just over 1.5 million doses of Sinopharm and of the AstraZeneca shot. Earlier this month, Egypt announced it was preparing to produce up to 80 million doses of the vaccine produced by China's Sinovac.

Apr

21

2021

By The African Mirror

Some countries limit AstraZeneca vaccine use, EU findings on J&J shot expected

COVID-19

SOME countries are restricting use of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to certain age groups, or suspending use, after European and British regulators confirmed possible links to rare blood clots. Johnson & Johnson's vaccine has also been hit by concerns over blood clots. European regulators will issue findings later of their review into clotting issues in adults who had received the shot in the United States. U.S. health agencies recommended pausing the single shot's use temporarily on April 13 after reports of six cases in women under 50. A health advisory panel will meet on April 23 to discuss whether the…

Apr

21

2021

By The African Mirror

More than 300 cases of rare blood clot events worldwide

COVID-19

THE European Union's drug regulator said on Tuesday there had been more than 300 cases worldwide of rare blood clotting incidents combined with low platelet counts after use of COVID-19 vaccines. There were 287 occurrences with the AstraZeneca vaccine, eight with Johnson & Johnson's shot, 25 for Pfizer and five for Moderna, said Peter Arlett, Head of Data Analytics at the European Medicines Agency (EMA).