By
Rashid Mbugri, GNA,
Tamale, June 19, GNA – The Northern Region
Directorate of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) has announced the commencement of
distribution of millions of Long Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLIN) in the Region
to help fight malaria.
It said the distribution of the LLIN began on
Tuesday, 19 June, 2018 and would continue for seven days.
The announcement was made during a regional
stakeholder meeting in Tamale on Tuesday.
The meeting was aimed at sensitising the
stakeholders on the LLIN distribution and the need to spread the message across
the region.
The GHS has also advised people within the
region to go to the various distribution centres with their code cards for
their nets before the deadline.
Mr Marcel Buamah, the Acting Regional Malaria
Focal Person, said the number of persons dying out of malaria especially
children in the region was still very high and with the help of the LLIN, it would help eliminate or at least lower the
rate of malaria cases in the region.
He urged the public to always go for a
laboratory tests whenever they suspected the malaria symptoms.
Mr Buamah said this would help prevent the
issues of self medications and its related implications.
Madam Patience Bauhin, a Health Promotion
Officer at the Regional Health Directorate, advised all pregnant women to visit
hospitals at the early stages of their pregnancy for Intermittent Preventive
Treatment (IPTp) to help protect them and their unborn babies from malaria.
She said all pregnant women are encouraged to
go for at least three or almost five of the IPTp treatments to help prevent
issues like miscarriages.
Madam Bauhin also urged the public especially
those in the rural areas to use the nets for its intended purpose.
She said unfortunately, many people use the
nets to cover their gardens or as their fishing nets and some others do convert
the nets into football nets.
Chief Alhassan Issahaku Amadu, a Capacity Development
Consultant, called for male participation in early antenatal care and visits
should be intensified to help prevent malaria in pregnant women.
He urged the GHS to make it a priority in
intensifying their monitoring and supervision on the effective use of the
treated nets.
GNA