HEALTH - The African Mirror

Aug

21

2020

Nigeria to deny entry to countries that bar Nigerians – minister

COVID-19

NIGERIA will bar entry to citizens of countries that do not allow in Nigerians due to coronavirus restrictions, Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika has announced. "The principle of reciprocity will be applied," Sirika told reporters. "If you ban us from coming to your country, the same will apply the other way." Nigeria earlier this week announced plans to resume international flights on August 29. All but essential international flights were halted in late March in an attempt to stem the spread of the virus. The resumption will begin with four flights daily to both Lagos and Abuja, but Sirika said that…

Aug

21

2020

By The African Mirror

Singing is no more of a COVID-19 risk than talking but volume matters, UK study finds

COVID-19

SINGING no more risky than speaking when it comes to the possibility of spreading the new coronavirus, British scientists said on Thursday, adding that volume is the most important risk factor. Last week, the British government changed its guidance to allow professionals and non-professionals to resume singing rehearsals and performance, bringing the required social distancing into line with usual COVID-19 rules and removing the need for extra mitigations. That decision was informed by a study by scientists based at the University of Bristol, who examined the amount of aerosols and droplets generated by 25 professional singers who did singing, speaking,…

Aug

20

2020

By The African Mirror

Homes to policing: Lockdown photos document South Africa inequality

COVID-19

KIM HARRISBERG A security officer holds a shotgun against his body in inner-city Johannesburg, eyeing a homeless man carrying a bag of food on his shoulders as he vacates the area. The photo captures one of a multitude of everyday inequalities that South African photographer Gulshan Khan has been documenting during the coronavirus pandemic. From heavy-handed policing to abandoned buildings-turned-homeless shelters, Khan is using her online following and recent international awards recognition to spotlight the spatial and racial divide across the country. "Race classification and segregation under apartheid demolished so much of our rich heritage and my photography interrogates the…

Aug

20

2020

By The African Mirror

Zambia’s vice president tests positive for COVID-19

COVID-19

ZAMBIA’S vice president Inonge Mutukwa has tested positive for the coronavirus, the presidency said in a statement, which also said her condition was stable and she was in self-isolation at home. "The vice president has some mild symptoms that are being managed appropriately ... She is in high spirits and working virtually ..." the statement said. - Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Aug

19

2020

By The African Mirror

Final journey for hero doctor, who died so others can live

COVID-19

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER DRESSED in the green and blue hazmat suits, the protective gear usually worn in hospital theatres during the battle to save lives, they lined the passage in a special guard of honour. The spotless floors gleamed and the eyes of the health workers were wet with heartbreak tears. The eerie silence was only punctuated by the soft singing, through the masks, of Amazing Grace. At the end of the long passage, a stretcher, pulled by a figure dressed in white/green, emerges. The emotional health workers nod and wave as they stretcher slowly goes past them. This is…

Aug

19

2020

By The African Mirror

South African smokers empty shops of cigarettes after ban lifted

COVID-19

TUMELO MODIBA and PROMIT MUKHERJEE IN the latest wave of panic-buying triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, South African smokers snapped up all the cigarettes they could lay their hands on after the lifting of a five-month ban designed to curb the spread of the coronavirus. As part of a broader easing of restrictions, President Cyril Ramaphosa on Saturday announced the end of a ban on sales of tobacco products and alcohol, effective from midnight on Monday. Customers, wary of shortages or future bans, bought whatever they could on Tuesday, in scenes reminiscent of panic-buying of groceries at the start of…

Aug

19

2020

By The African Mirror

Namibia warns about elephant dung cure for coronavirus as cases rise

COVID-19

THE Namibian government is warning its citizens not to trust claims on social media that elephant dung can cure COVID-19, as coronavirus infections rise more rapidly. Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism spokesman, Romeo Muyunda, told Reuters the government had observed that elephant dung was increasingly being touted as a COVID-19 cure. "We have seen on social media people selling elephant dung at exorbitant prices. There is a whole hype around it," he said. Health Minister Kalumbi Shangula said COVID-19 currently has no known cure. "If anybody claims as such, it must be treated as a false claim," he told…

Aug

19

2020

By The African Mirror

Zimbabwe shortens coronavirus curfew, extends business hours

COVID-19

ZIMBABWE has shortened an overnight curfew imposed to combat the coronavirus pandemic and extended business hours despite rising cases, the government said after a weekly cabinet meeting. President Emmerson Mnangagwa last month announced a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, but Information Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said this had left commuters stranded without transport. The overnight curfew will now start at 8 p.m., while business hours will be extended to 4.30 p.m from 3 p.m. Zimbabwe has recorded 5,308 cases and 135 deaths. Officials fear a wholesale removal of restrictions on movement would see a spike in infections and overwhelm a…

Aug

18

2020

By The African Mirror

Mental health for pregnant women and new mothers: why extra care is needed

HEALTH

ABEL FEKADU DADI, PhD research fellow (Epidemiology), Flinders University The experience of pregnancy and childbirth has been conventionally described as a happy and joyful period of time. On the other hand, the childbearing age for females is a risky time to develop depression. This is due to a range of hormonal and other changes women go through during pregnancy and childbirth. There’s much more awareness about depression today than there was two decades ago. In 2014 the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported depression as a leading mental health issue. Recent global evidence has shown a substantial burden of perinatal depression…

Aug

18

2020

By The African Mirror

Volunteering in Nigeria’s COVID-19 battle

COVID-19

HAUWA Ibrahim is unsure when she will see her family again. Four months ago, the 29-year-old nurse volunteered to work at a COVID-19 treatment centre in Nigeria’s capital Abuja. Worried she might put her family at risk of catching the virus, she opted to stay at the centre. Like her, many health workers lending a hand to the country’s battle against the pandemic have forgone time with family. Working up to 12 hours a day when it gets busy, Ibrahim, who opted to volunteer fulltime when Asokoro hospital in Abuja was turned into a COVID-19 treatment centre, says few are…