Its 11th International Classification of Diseases (ICD) will include the condition “gaming disorder”.

The draft document describes it as a pattern of persistent or recurrent gaming behaviour so severe that it takes “precedence over other life interests”.

Some countries had already identified it as a major public health issue.

Many, including the UK, have private addiction clinics to “treat” the condition.

The last version of the ICD was completed in 1992, with the new guide due to be published in 2018.

The guide contains codes for diseases, signs and symptoms and is used by doctors and researchers to track and diagnose disease.

It will suggest that abnormal gaming behaviour should be in evidence over a period of at least 12 months “for a diagnosis to be assigned” but added that period might be shortened “if symptoms are severe”.

Symptoms include:

• impaired control over gaming (frequency, intensity, duration)
• increased priority given to gaming
• continuation or escalation of gaming despite negative consequences

Dr Richard Graham, lead technology addiction specialist at the Nightingale Hospital in London, welcomed the decision to recognise the condition.

“It is significant because it creates the opportunity for more specialised services. It puts it on the map as something to take seriously.”

But he added that he would have sympathy for those who do not think the condition should be medicalised.

“It could lead to confused parents whose children are just enthusiastic gamers.”

He said he sees about 50 new cases of digital addiction each year and his criteria is based on whether the activity is affecting basic things such as sleep, eating, socialising and education.

He said one question he asked himself was: “Is the addiction taking up neurological real-estate, dominating thinking and preoccupation?”

Many psychiatrists refer to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), the fifth edition of which was published in 2013.

In that, internet gaming disorder is listed as a “condition for further study”, meaning it is not officially recognised.

Lots of countries are grappling with the issue and in South Korea the government has introduced a law banning access for children under 16 from online games between midnight and 06:00.

In Japan, players are alerted if they spend more than a certain amount of time each month playing games and in China, internet giant Tencent has limited the hours that children can play its most popular games.

A recent study from the University of Oxford suggested that, although children spend a lot of time on their screens, they generally managed to intertwine their digital pastimes with daily life.

The research – looking at children aged eight to 18 – found that boys spent longer playing video games than girls.

Researcher Killian Mullan said: “People think that children are addicted to technology and in front of these screens 24/7, to the exclusion of other activities – and we now know that is not the case.”

“Our findings show that technology is being used with and in some cases perhaps to support other activities, like homework for instance, and not pushing them out,” he added.

“Just like we adults do, children spread their digital tech use throughout the day, while doing other things.”

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Source: BBC

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The Director of Disease Control and Surveillance at the Ghana Health Service, Dr Franklin Asiedu Bekoe had earlier made similar indications to Citi News about the procurement of vaccines for the school.

[contextly_sidebar id=”eBhohiQXM3JCLKB0qOnpLpI6zRECcJee”]Addressing Parliament on Friday, the Health Minister, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, said, “as I speak, indications that we are getting from WHO is such that vaccines that can combat the strain that we have are available and we are making arrangements to see how best we can bring some of them into the country for further activities.”

On Thursday, the Ministry announced that samples from Kumasi Academy students sent to the Noguchi Memorial Institute tested positive for the pandemic strain of influenza type A, H1N1 2009 also known as Swine Flu.

The samples were sent after it became clear there was a health crisis in the school following the death of four students in the last week.

An outbreak of an acute respiratory infection has also been confirmed in the school.

Health officials making headway

Mr. Agyemang-Manu described the developments as “good news” because the health officials now have a concrete lead to work on in their efforts to overcome the illness.

“Earlier, we were overwhelmed and it is like we were on an unknown island and we didn’t even know what to do. So now that this has been confirmed, at least we know the disease is curable. It can, therefore, be diagnosed and treated,” he stated.

Vaccination is said to be the most effective way of preventing the disease, even when circulating viruses may not exactly match the vaccine viruses.

It should be noted that the outright cause of death of the four students of the school and the hospitalization of 32 has not yet been fully confirmed.

NUGS donates sanitizers 

Meanwhile, the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) has also donated some hand sanitizers to the school.

The National President of the Union, Oheneba Elisha Essuman, also said his outfit will send a proposal to the Health Ministry to ensure that Kumasi Academy is furnished with a well-resourced clinic.

–

By: Delali Adogla-Bessa.citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Pedro Alonso, director of the WHO’s global malaria programme, is quoted by the Reuters news agency as saying:

“We want [this to be] a wake-up call to the malaria community. We are not on track, and we need to get back on track.”

Last year the number of people infected by malaria was up by five million on the previous year.

Funding has been allowed to plateau over the last 10 years, the WHO said.

It also said a complacent attitude to the disease has seen a drop in the use of preventative tools such as bed nets, indoor spraying and primary healthcare.

More than 400,000 people died of the disease in 2016, the vast majority being children under five.

–

Source: BBC

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Martha O’Donovan, 25, is accused of referring to Mr Mugabe as “selfish man and sick man”, a charge she denies.

She faces charges of insulting the president and plotting to overthrow the government, her lawyer told US media.

Her arrest appears to be the first of its kind since the country’s cyber ministry was created last month.

The charge of plotting to overthrow the government carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

Ms O’Donovan, who reportedly manages Magamba TV, an online-based satirical video outlet, was “arrested during a dawn raid at her Harare residence,” the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) said in a Facebook post.

Police accuse her of tweeting: “We are being led by a selfish and sick man,” from the Twitter handle @matigary, said Obey Shava, a lawyer with ZLHR who is representing her.

The tweet in question, dated 11 October, includes an illustration of a man using a catheter, as well as a photo of Mr Mugabe with a circle drawn around his midsection.

The US embassy in Zimbabwe did not immediately return a request for comment.

In a statement to police seen by the Reuters and Associated Press news agencies, Ms O’Donovan is said to have denied “the allegations being levelled against me as baseless and malicious”.

ZLHR said that Ms O’Donovan’s arrest marks the “first Twitter-related arrest” after the Zimbabwean government created a Ministry of Cyber Security, Threat Detection and Mitigation last month.

Critics say the new ministry is a government effort to crack down on social media users.

“This arrest marks the start of a sinister new chapter in the Zimbabwean government’s clampdown on freedom of speech, and the new battleground is social media,” said Amnesty International’s deputy regional director, Muleya Mwananyanda.

Mr Mugabe, 93, has led Zimbabwe for the last three decades.

Last month, the World Health Organization (WHO) revoked his appointment as a goodwill ambassador after a widespread outcry over human rights concerns.

–

Source: BBC

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Suicide is a serious public health problem; however, suicides are preventable with timely, evidence-based and often low-cost interventions. For national responses to be effective, a comprehensive multi-sectoral suicide prevention strategy is needed.

History has is it that, in the ancient times, people took their own life in response to escape evil, avoid shame, express grief over a tragic death, or avoid capture or dishonor in battle. Overall, however, suicide was condemned. There are six instances of suicide in the Old Testament whiles in the New Testament, the only suicide mentioned is that of Judas Iscariot (Matthew 27:3-5, Acts of the Apostles 1:18-20) who betrayed Jesus and proceeded to hang himself.  Indeed the Bible suggests that this act is shameful.

Apart from the Christian religion, all other religions do not approve of suicide as an appropriate means to exit the earth.  The consequences of suicide beyond the fact that almost all religion disapproves of it, are not just that one person is dead, that a precious life has ended. It is also a tragedy of epic proportions for the people left behind.

This notwithstanding World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that every year close to 800 000 people take their own life and there are many more people who attempt suicide. Every suicide is a tragedy that affects families, communities and entire countries and has long-lasting effects on the people left behind. Suicide occurs throughout the lifespan and was the second leading cause of death among 15–29-year-olds globally in 2015.

Suicide does not just occur in high-income countries but is a global phenomenon in all regions of the world. In fact, over 78% of global suicides occurred in low- and middle-income countries in 2015.

Interestingly suicide is reported as a major cause of premature mortality worldwide, but data on its epidemiology in Africa, the world’s second most populous continent, are limited.

Regional or national suicide incidence data were available for less than one third (16/53) of African countries containing approximately 60% of Africa’s population; suicide attempt data were available for <20% of countries (7/53).

Crude estimates suggest there are over 34,000 (inter-quartile range 13,141 to 63,757) suicides per year in Africa, with an overall incidence rate of 3.2 per 100,000 population. The recent Global Burden of Disease (GBD) estimate of 49,558 deaths is somewhat higher but falls within the inter-quartile range of GBD’s estimate. Suicide rates in men are typically at least three times higher than in women.

The most frequently used methods of suicide are hanging and pesticide poisoning. Reported risk factors are similar for suicide and suicide attempts and include interpersonal difficulties, mental and physical health problems, socioeconomic problems and drug and alcohol use/abuse.

Qualitative studies are needed to identify additional culturally relevant risk factors and to understand how risk factors may be connected to suicidal behaviour in different socio-cultural contexts.

Ghana records about 1,500 suicide cases annually, the Chief Executive of the Mental Health Authority, Dr. Akwasi Osei, has revealed. This figure constituted about seven per cent loss of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) but little attention is paid to suicide cases in the country.

The Mental Health Authority Chief notes that, in every single reported case of suicide, there are four unreported case of suicide, this, therefore, bring the number of unreported cases to about 6,000 annually.

This is a primitively outrageous statistics which should prompt Ghana to prioritize and mainstreaming issues of mental health much more seriously.

Who is at risk?

While the link between suicide and mental disorders (in particular, depression and alcohol use disorders) is well established in high-income countries, many suicides happen impulsively in moments of crisis with a breakdown in the ability to deal with life stresses, such as financial problems, relationship break-up or chronic pain and illness.

In addition, experiencing conflict, disaster, violence, abuse, or loss and a sense of isolation are strongly associated with suicidal behaviour. Suicide rates are also high amongst vulnerable groups who experience discrimination, such as refugees and migrants; indigenous peoples; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex (LGBTI) persons; and prisoners. By far the strongest risk factor for suicide is a previous suicide attempt.

Indeed mental health is a complex issue and it’s easy to become confused and unclear about its impact. What is for sure is that everyone’s mental health is important and Ghana as a country should devise comprehensive measures to help anyone who is feeling stigmatized because of poor mental health.

Stigma, particularly surrounding mental disorders and suicide, means many people thinking of taking their own life or who have attempted suicide are not seeking help and are therefore not getting the help they need. The prevention of suicide has not been adequately addressed due to a lack of awareness of suicide as a major public health problem and the taboo in many societies to openly discuss it. To date, only a few countries have included suicide prevention among their health priorities and only 28 countries report having a national suicide prevention strategy.

Raising community awareness and breaking down the taboo is important for Ghana to make progress in preventing suicide.

Methods of suicide

WHO estimates that around 30% of global suicides are due to pesticide self-poisoning, most of which occur in rural agricultural areas in low- and middle-income countries. Other common methods of suicide are hanging and firearms.

Knowledge of the most commonly used suicide methods is important to devise prevention strategies which have shown to be effective, such as restriction of access to means of suicide.

Prevention and control

Suicides are preventable but certainly not what pertains in Ghana’s criminal code of criminalizing suicide. Section 57 Clause 2 of the 1960 Criminal Code of Ghana should, therefore, be expunged without further delay. Additionally, there are a number of measures that can be taken at population, sub-population and individual levels to prevent suicide and suicide attempts. These include:

• reducing access to the means of suicide (e.g. pesticides, firearms, certain medications);
• reporting by media in a responsible way;
• introducing alcohol policies to reduce the harmful use of alcohol;
• early identification, treatment and care of people with mental and substance use disorders, chronic pain and acute emotional distress;
• training of non-specialized health workers in the assessment and management of suicidal behaviour;
• follow-up care for people who attempted suicide and provision of community support.

Suicide is a complex issue and therefore suicide prevention efforts require coordination and collaboration among multiple sectors of society, including the health sector and other sectors such as education, labour, agriculture, business, justice, law, defense, politics, and the media. These efforts must be comprehensive and integrated as no single approach alone can make an impact on an issue as complex as suicide.

–

By: Jerry Detse Mensah-Pah/The author is an Industrial Relations and Development Practitioner and can be reached on [email protected] or 0243164704.

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WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus named Mugabe as a goodwill ambassador on Wednesday at a conference in Uruguay that both men were attending.

But the appointment was rescinded on Sunday following a backlash from Western donors, rights groups and opposition parties.

Last Friday, the state-owned Herald celebrated the largely ceremonial appointment as a ‘New feather in President’s cap’, adding that Mugabe, 93, had accepted the role.

His spokesman told the same newspaper on Tuesday that Zimbabwe’s sole leader since independence from Britain in 1980 had only heard about the appointment via the media.

“Had anything been put to the President … (he) would have found such a request to be an awkward one,” Charamba was quoted as saying.

“The WHO cannot take back what it never gave in the first place, and as far as he is concerned, all this hullabaloo over a non-appointment is in fact a non-event.”

Charamba did not respond to calls seeking further comment.

Mugabe’s critics were outraged by Tedros’ announcement, saying he was rewarding a man whose government had presided over the collapse of Zimbabwe’s health system.

Charamba said the fact that Zimbabwe was a producer and exporter of tobacco, mostly to China, would have meant Mugabe campaigning against a crop that underpins the economy.

Tobacco is Zimbabwe’s single largest foreign currency earner, bringing in an average $800 million annually in the last four years, according to official data.

“To be seen to be playing goodwill ambassador in respect of an agency which has a well-defined stance on tobacco growing and tobacco selling, that would have been a contradiction,” Charamba said.

–

Source: Reuters

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“I have listened carefully to all who have expressed their concerns,” WHO head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement.

He had previously praised Zimbabwe for its commitment to public health.

But critics pointed out that Zimbabwe’s healthcare system had collapsed under Mr Mugabe’s 30-year rule.

Staff often go without pay, medicines are in short supply, and Mr Mugabe, who has outlived the average life expectancy in his country by three decades, travels abroad for medical treatment.

Mr Tedros said he had consulted with the Zimbabwean government and decided that rescinding Mr Mugabe’s position was “in the best interests of” the WHO.

He said he remained “firmly committed to working with all countries and their leaders” to build universal health care.

Mr Tedros, elected in May under the slogan “let’s prove the impossible is possible” had said he hoped Mr Mugabe would use his goodwill ambassador role to “influence his peers in the region”.

But the appointment was met by a wave of surprise and condemnation. The UK government, the Canadian prime minister, the Wellcome Trust, the NCD Alliance, UN Watch, the World Heart Federation, Action Against Smoking and Zimbabwean lawyers and social media users were among those who criticised the decision.

–

Source: BBC

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Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus’s original proposal sparked an outcry.

He had previously praised Zimbabwe for its commitment to public health.

But Mr Mugabe’s critics say Zimbabwe’s healthcare system has collapsed under his 30-year rule, with staff often going without pay while medicines are in short supply.

It led Zimbabwean human rights lawyer Doug Coltart to take to Twitter to question how the WHO felt about having “a Goodwill Ambassador who destroyed the health sector in his country”.

Other social media users accused the president – who, at 93, has outlived his country’s average life expectancy by more than three decades – of travelling abroad to receive his own medical treatment.

Dear @WHO

Your new goodwill ambassador presides over a collapsed health system & goes to Singapore for treatment pic.twitter.com/6rontGROXZ

— Alex T Magaisa (@Wamagaisa) October 21, 2017

Meanwhile, the UK government described his selection as “surprising and disappointing” given his country’s human rights record, and warned it could overshadow the WHO’s work.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he “thought it was a bad April Fool’s joke”, while the US state department said it “clearly contradicts the United Nations ideals of respect for human rights and human dignity”.

Zimbabwe’s leader has been frequently taken to task over human rights abuses by both the EU and the US.

Other groups who have criticised Mr Mugabe’s appointment include the Wellcome Trust, the NCD Alliance, UN Watch, the World Heart Federation and Action Against Smoking.

Dr Tedros had said Zimbabwe was a country that “places universal health coverage and health promotion at the centre of its policies to provide health care to all”.

However, the Ethiopian said on Saturday he was “rethinking his approach in light of WHO values”.

Mr Mugabe was supposed to be goodwill ambassador “to help tackle non-communicable diseases”, which includes things like heat attacks and asthma.

Dr Tedros is the first African to lead the WHO. He was elected in May with a mandate to tackle perceived politicisation in the organisation.

–
Source: BBC

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Each day there are more than 5,000 new cases of the waterborne disease, which causes acute diarrhoea and dehydration, in the country where the health system has collapsed after more than two years of war, it said.

“The total number of suspected cholera cases in Yemen this year hit the half a million mark on Sunday, and nearly 2,000 people have died since the outbreak began to spread rapidly at the end of April,” the WHO said in a statement on Monday.

“The spread of cholera has slowed significantly in some areas compared to peak levels but the disease is still spreading fast in more recently affected districts, which are recording large numbers of cases,” it said, reporting a total of 503,484 cases.

The disease, spread by ingestion of food or water tainted with human faeces, can kill within hours if untreated. It has been largely eradicated in developed countries equipped with sanitation systems and water treatment.

But Yemen’s devastating civil war, pitting a Saudi-led military coalition against the Iran-backed armed Houthi group, and economic collapse has made it extremely difficult to deal with catastrophes such as cholera and mass hunger.

Millions of Yemenis remain cut off from clean water and waste collection has ceased in major cities, the WHO added.

Yemen’s 30,000 critical health workers have not been paid salaries in nearly a year and critical medicines are lacking, the WHO said.

“These doctors and nurses are the backbone of the health response – without them we can do nothing in Yemen. They must be paid their wages so that they can continue to save lives,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.

WHO and partners are working around the clock to set up cholera treatment clinics, rehabilitate health facilities, deliver medical supplies and support the national effort, the United Nations agency said.

More than 99 percent of patients who reach health facilities survive but children and the elderly are most vulnerable.

“The response is working in some places. We can tell you that surveillance confirms a decline in suspected cases over the past four weeks in some of the most affected governorates,” WHO spokeswoman Fadela Chaib told a news briefing last Friday.

“Most notably Sanaa city, Hajja and Amran are consistent with his decline. But in many other districts, cases and deaths persist and are on the rise.”

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Source: Reuters

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According to WHO , other additions include medicine for HIV, hepatitis C, tuberculosis and leukaemia.

The updated list adds 30 medicines for adults and 25 for children, and specifies new uses for 9 already-listed products, bringing the total to 433 drugs deemed essential for addressing the most important public health needs.

The WHO EML is used by many countries to increase access to medicine.

Dr Marie-Paule Kirby, WHO Assistant Direction-General for Health Systems and Innovation, said “Safe and effective medicines are an essential part of any health system.”

“Making sure all people can access the medicines they need, when and where they need them, is vital to countries’ progress towards universal health coverage,”she added.

WHO experts have grouped antibiotics into three categories – ACCESS, WATCH and RESERVE – with recommendations on when each category should be used.

Initially, the new categories will only apply to antibiotics used to treat 21 of the most common general infections. If shown to be useful, it could be broadened in future versions of the EML to apply to drugs which could be used to treat other infections.

WHO experts have also added 10 antibiotics to the list for adults and 12 for children.

Dr Suzanne Hill, Director of Essential Medicines and Health Products, said “the rise in antibiotic resistance stems from how we are using – and misusing – these medicines.”

“The new WHO list should help health system planners and prescribers ensure people who need antibiotics have access to them, and ensure they get the right one, so that the problem of resistance doesn’t get worse.”

The updated EML also includes several new drugs, such as two oral cancer treatments, a new pill for hepatitis C that combines two medicines, a more effective treatment for HIV as well as an older drug that can be taken to prevent HIV infection in people at high risk, new paediatric formulations of medicines for tuberculosis, and pain relievers among others.

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Source: GNA

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