An instant logistic company, Zipline, completed its first medical drone deliveries to health facilities in Kaduna State.

Senior Vice President of Africa, Zipline, Mr. Daniel Marfo, said this in a statement in Lagos.

He said, “The initial flight mark the final stage of integration with the local health systems and validation with the regulatory authorities.

Marfo, who quoted Governor Nasir El-Rufai said that, Zipline had a proven track record of health system transformation.

Mrs Amina Mohammed Baloni, Commissioner for Health, Kaduna State, said, “Investment in the supply chain makes health systems more efficient, effective and equitable.

“Today’s flights are an important step toward ensuring people across Kaduna State have access to the care they need, precisely when and where they need it, to drive better health outcome and foster healthier communities.”

Dr. Olumuyiwa Aliu, Lifetime Goodwill Ambassador of International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and former President of ICAO Council said, “With more than 315,000 commercial deliveries worldwide, Zipline has built an impressive record of safe, reliable and impactful service.

“Soon, the company is expected to bring this game changing service to millions of people and bring us one step closer to a world where anyone can get whatever they need, whenever and wherever they need it.

Clinical Psychologist, Dr Adedotun Ajiboye, Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, has advised Nigerians to pay attention to the language or behavior of someone experiencing suicidal thoughts.

Ajiboye said, a person contemplating suicide usually exhibited symptoms like isolation, distracted thoughts, hopelessness, indifferent or strange behaviors.

“If you suspect someone experiencing suicidal thoughts, discussing topics like suicide of self-harm with an open mind can encourage others to share the concerns that made them contemplate suicide.

“Maintaining patience is important when dealing with a person having suicidal thoughts because your agitation or restlessness can add to the person’s woes. Motivating the person to adopt a healthy lifestyle by eating healthy, sleeping on time, exercising regularly, can help in reducing suicidal tendencies,” he said.

According to him, the family members or common friend can be of great help to handle any risky unpredictable behaviour.

“Seek professional help or medical intervention from National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to help the person experiencing suicidal thoughts,” Ajiboye said.

He said other symptoms are fatigue, sleep disturbance, anxiety, and neurocognitive and sexual dysfunction, low self-esteem.

Ajiboye advised that, the people should always be on their toes and ready with a safety plan in case of somebody contemplating suicide.

He urged people to remove things like knives, pills and razors that can potentially provoke suicidal tendencies.

A Professor of Othopaedic, Lawrence Oginni, has call on the federal government of Nigeria to prioritise healthcare delivery to the citizens.

Oginni, a Professor at the Department of Orthopaedics Surgery and Traumatology, Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), gave the advice during his Valedictory Lecture in Ile-Ife, Osun State.

Oginni charged the Federal Government to put measure in place for easy accessibility to clinics and primary healthcare hospitals such that people at the grassroots would have access to healthcare.

The Expert appealed to government to have proper arrangement for welfare of health workers to enable them to be more committed to their duties.

He mentioned that, infrastructure was not enough at the hospitals which had adverse effect on their works.

He also called for staff motivation in all hospitals, adding that there should be current and further training and retraining regularly for updating their skills.

A Physician with the Accident and Emergency Department, Federal Medical Centre, Abuja, Dr. Arome Adejo, has lamented the lack of equipment to treat accident victims especially those in critical condition in tertiary hospitals in the country.

Dr. Adejo mentioned during an interview that, “Lack of equipment was leading to unavoidable deaths of accident victims.”

According to the physician, most government tertiary hospitals across the country do not have a computed tomography scan to attend to unconscious accident victims.

He noted that the cause of death of accident victims requiring emergency care was a lack of CT scans and a shortage of blood at the blood banks.

The casualty officer pointed out that anybody can be in an emergency at any time, urging the government to address the gaps.

The World Health Organisation states that road traffic accidents cost low and middle-income countries between 1.0 and 2.0 per cent of their Gross National Product annually, more than the development aid the countries receive.

In the first three quarters of 2018, the Federal Road Safety Corps put the economic losses to road traffic crashes at N9.8 billion.

Adejo maintained that a tertiary hospital should have a CT scan, expressing displeasure that necessary equipment needed to treat accident victims is not available and this shloud be  address as a matter of urgency.

The Director General of the Cross River State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Janet Ekpenyong has described regular and high impact health interventions as the panacea to reducing maternal and infant mortality.

Dr. Ekpenyong made the remark at the flag-off of the 2022 Maternal, New Born and Child Healthcare week in Calabar, the capital of Cross River State, south-south Nigeria.

Dr. Ekpenyong, who represented the wife of the governor, Dr. Linda Ayade, said that government was committed to ensuring that pregnant women and children from 0 to 59 months get the needed healthcare interventions required.

According to her, the Cross River State Government was collaborating with the Nigerian Government and development partners to introduce high impact health interventions such as routine immunization and vitamin supplements for pregnant women and children from time to time she stated.

Speaking further with newsmen, the Cross River Primary Healthcare Agency Director General said that the Maternal, Newborn and Child Healthcare Week afforded children within the ages of 0 to 5 years the opportunity to receive vitamin A supplementation necessary for strong immunity.

She explained that besides administering vitamin A to the children, the state government was also deworming them as an essential requirement for better nutrition.

Highpoint of the ceremony was the administration of vitamin A supplements and deworming tablets to the children below the ages of 5 years as well as distribution of mosquito nets, pregnancy kits and other supplements to pregnant women and nursing mothers in Diamond Hill community, Calabar Municipal council area.