As Nigeria implements the U.S.-supported National HIV Clinical Mentorship Program, new evidence from Zambia has shown that clinical mentorship can rapidly accelerate HIV epidemic control in countries implementing the new sustainable approach.

The HIV Clinical mentorship program supports developing a workforce that can lead, manage, and monitor the HIV/AIDS response within its healthcare system.

In Nigeria, the clinical mentorship program modeled from Zambia was also designed to increase Government ownership of the HIV program with a team of highly experienced mentors engaging with health officials to domesticate key HIV guidelines and innovations at the facility level.

In a recently released scientific paper in the journal PLOS, “new evidence has shown that the implementation of Zambia’s national HIV clinical mentorship program aligned with progress toward the UNAIDS 90/90/90 targets in the four selected provinces”.

“Program data from the country indicated that rates of HIV case-finding, index-case testing, HIV testing efficiency, treatment initiation, viral load testing coverage, and viral load suppression significantly improved during the implementation period”.

In her remarks, the Paper’s Lead author, Dr. Mary Adetinuke Boyd, who currently serves as the Nigeria Country Director of US-CDC, said “the results from Zambia has justified continued support for the mentorship program and made a case for the implementation of similar programs in other settings such as Nigeria. In the current phase of the HIV epidemic response, there is a greater focus on ensuring country ownership to promote sustainability, while maintaining epidemic control,” she said.

Nigeria is currently implementing a National HIV Clinical Mentors Program that uses a similar approach to Zambia’s effort to develop local ownership, as it helps to not only establish a capable workforce that can provide quality care for individuals, but also the quality HIV program management at sites, and ultimately a successful national HIV response utilizing tested public health approaches.

The scientific paper is the first published report of a government-led national HIV clinical mentorship program in sub-Saharan Africa that aligned with significant improvement in key HIV programmatic indicators.

The Commissioner for Health, Dr Bode Ladipo, in a statement he made to journalists in Ibadan, disclosed that the state has recorded 19 confirmed cases, noting that resources have been deployed to designated health facilities to forestall the spread of the disease across the state.

He noted that four health workers were confirmed positive for Lassa Fever, while three out of them, consisting two doctors and another hospital staff, died despite all efforts at caring for them by experts.

Ladipo maintained that surveillance activities have been heightened at the grassroots across the state, adding that access to care has been provided to all individuals at risk of the disease.

The commissioner enjoined individuals having symptoms such as fever, sore throat, vomiting, general body weakness, chest pain, back pain, cough, diarrhea, swollen face, eyes or neck, stomach pain or bleeding from ear, eyes, nose, mouth or any other body openings to report promptly to the nearest health facility or call the State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) on 08095394000 or 08095863000.

He implored all residents of the state to avoid contact with rats, contaminated food items by rat faeces, urine, and other body fluid while maintaining strict personal and environmental hygiene, noting that the virus causing the disease is transmitted from infected rats to humans or an infected human to other humans.

Ladipo charged all health facilities across the state to maintain a high index of suspicion and report all suspected cases to LGAs or state health authorities, adding that the provision of qualitative health care is a joint responsibility of all.

The statement reads in part: “Oyo State Ministry of Health has continued to make frantic efforts at curtailing the spread of the outbreak of Lassa Fever since the first case in January 2022. “Nineteen confirmed cases and four deaths have been recorded so far.

“Surveillance activities have been heightened at the grassroots across the state. Access to care has been provided to all individuals at risk of this disease.

“Resources have also been deployed to designated health facilities to forestall the spread of this disease across the State.

“The public is therefore admonished to remain calm while ensuring adherence to strict preventive measures.

“It is important to note that the virus causing this disease is transmitted from infected rats to humans or an infected human to other humans.

“The Ministry hereby implores all residents of the state to avoid contact with rats, contaminated food items by rat feces, urine, and other body fluid while maintaining strict personal and environmental hygiene. “

“Let me at this juncture note that the provision of qualitative health care is a joint responsibility of all. Together we can curb the spread of Lassa fever in Oyo State.”

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has urged Nigerians to desist from patronising unregistered drugs.

This call was made by the Coordinator of the agency in Sokoto State, Mr. Garba Adamu, on Thursday during a street sensitisation campaign

organised in collaboration with the Community Development Service group of the National Youth Service Corps in Sokoto.

Adamu said that the agency would intensify efforts to safeguard the lives of the people by ensuring that products and services complied with stipulated production laws and regulations.

He explained that surveillance, patrol and inspection were routinely conducted by the agency’s officials at all levels.

He appealed to Nigerians to cooperate with the agency by ensuring that they patronised only registered drugs and consumables, as well as observed expiry dates at all times.

Adamu further appealed to the people to always report suspected cases of contamination, adulteration and other counterfeits to nearby NAFDAC offices and authorities for prompt attention.

The NAFDAC official decried the prevalence of men’s sexual performance-enhancing drugs, otherwise known as “manpower” in Nigerian markets.

According to him, most of such drugs are not registered with NAFDAC, and some of them are smuggled into the country.

He added that “many men have died using such drugs and their relatives would blame their deaths on some imaginary witches in the village. Some of the producers of these drugs would claim they have no side effects.

“However, the majority of these products do not go through the approval process of the agency, but the agency would not relent in going after the peddlers of such dangerous drugs until they were brought to book.”

He added that the agency adopted a multifaceted approach in fighting the preponderance of banned and falsified drugs and consumables in the country.

He decried the attitude of some people whom he described as “shylocks”, as they follow every means to make a quick money at the expense of the health and lives of consumers.