New Breakthrough in HIV Prevention

There is good news for many African women as a new HIV preventative is being developed to help prevent the contraction of HIV. Previously woman have had to rely on a pill that they have to take daily, Truvada, which has proven difficult to maintain as they are not discrete and create a social pressure and stigma. These HIV preventatives are important as the UNAids data shows that women are significantly more affected by HIV, most unfortunately so, for many young teenage girls aged 15-19.

This new preventative comes as an injection that women would need to get six times a year for protection. The pre-exposure prophylaxis (Prep) has proven to be superior to the daily oral intake of Truvada and will need to be administered every eight weeks. HIV cure studies have had to cease temporarily, due to the priority shift towards COVID-19 and to ensure that study participants are safer from the risk of getting Coronavirus.

The Fight to End SARS

The Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Nigeria, have long been accused of extortion, beatings, killings and more. Protesters have marched daily, nationwide, for a week demanding an change in police forces. During these demonstrations, they have been met with beatings, tear gas and gunfire from police which has killed at least ten people, says the human rights group Amnesty International.

On Tuesday, the police agreed to not use violence against the demonstrators and announced the formation of a new police unit called the Special Weapons and Tactics team (SWAT), to replace the disbanded SARS. Many of the protesters remain sceptical that this new promise will not be upheld and that SWAT is simply a rebranding of SARS.

Wednesday, the day after these announcements, protestors were back to the streets still pressing their call for police reform whilst Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, requested protestors to decrease their demonstrations due to the disruption it is causing to businesses still struggling from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Latest on Coronavirus in Africa

While coronavirus continues to peak and trough all over the world it seems that cases in Africa are, for the time being, declining with the continent-wide daily average dropping by 700 known cases last week, compared to the week before.

The CDC director of Africa, Dr John Nkengasong said this was a “sign of hope” but for Africa “it’s very, very early…” and that “We take this news with cautious optimism”. Health officials in Africa are not wanting people to get complacent at trying to prevent the spread of the virus as it can spread very rapidly.

Africa has recorded 1,147,369 cases, and about 26,000 deaths, more than half of the recorded cases are within South Africa, as that is where testing is the highest. Testing has steadily increased, the past few months, with more than 10 million tests conducted so far, according to the Africa CDC, which is nearly 1 percent of the continent’s population.

African Safari with an infant

While taking your little one away on an African safari may seem like a great idea, there are many things to consider before you go ahead and book that trip of a lifetime.

Malaria zones are common in Africa and depending on the age of the infant they may not be able to receive the prophylactic medication for this. Which could result in an extremely poorly infant.

Some safari camps are age-restricted and unfenced, so it is important to evaluate these risks and restrictions.

Consider the climate and environment- the African safari can be humid and dusty, so it is important to make considerations to adapt the travel to suit your infant.

Also you may be required to take a smaller inland flight which can be uncomfortable due to the cabin being non-pressurised. Also consider the limited luggage allowance on these flights, when you will need to think about a pram or nappy/ feeding supplies.

Why Do Leaders in Africa Prefer Medical Treatments Abroad?

It has been well document the love African leaders for health systems’ abroad, but why is this? What do treatments have abroad over the treatments in the African continent? Africa can prides itself with some of the best hospitals in the world, equally having the best trained doctors who are highly demanded abroad.

So what are the leaders looking for in those hospitals abroad that they can’t experience in Africa? Or is it the case that they build those ultramodern and well-equiped hospitals, train the best doctors but lack faith in them? Are they by such actions encouraging us to also lose confidence in the continents own doctors and system?

Maybe it’s to do with privacy and politics? Politics is a massive game all over, so maybe the privacy of an individual’s health is extremely important, as ill politicians are seen as weak politicians. Sad but true.