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Health: St Giles patients not forgotten during festive season

Patients at St Giles hospital were grateful to receive gifts from the Hon. Assistant Minister for Health & Medical Services Mrs Veena Bhatnagar on behalf of the Board of Visitors.

Mrs Bhatnagar visited St Giles Hospital to distribute gifts and meet with St Giles patients and staff.

The Board of Visitors for St Giles Hospital were able to collect gifts with the help of the business community, and more importantly to ensure that the patients that they are loved and thought of during this festive season.

Mrs Veena Bhatnagar while presenting the gifts to the patients said the main thing about Christmas was that it is a time of sharing time, faith and love with all those around us.

“That is why we are here today, to share with you and I hope you receive these gifts not just as a token, but as a sign of our support for you. Also for you to remember that there is someone out there thinking and willing to care about you” said Mrs Bhatnagar.

Hospitals are not places for patients to spend their lifetime. After treatment they must be taken home and shown the same love and care as any other member of society.

Families and relatives of patients at St Giles Hospital are encouraged to visit them during this festive season as the country will be celebrating Christmas and the joy of love and sharing.

Meanwhile, the Government has allocated $1.9 million for the maintenance and upgrading of the whole facility which is expected to be completed by May 2016.

The Ministry of Health & Medical Services is encouraging the people of Fiji to maintain a healthy lifestyle and make wise nutrition choices this festive season.

With food and drinks being the highlight of the festivities, the Health Ministry is also advising the public to be more physically activity.

The Hon. Minister for Health & Medical Services Mr Jone Usamate said that foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar as well as alcohol should be consumed in moderation.

“The Health Ministry has available the Khana Kakana cookbook and a Live Healthy, Stay Healthy booklet that can be used as a guide in preparing healthy meals”.

Mr Usamate added that non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are increasing as statistics shows that 30% of Fijians currently suffer from one. Furthermore with current trends in lifestyle habits, the percentage of people suffering from NCDs will increase.

“Lifestyle or behavioural risk factor intervention remains a key in Fiji’s fight against NCDs. We must all ensure that we are eating in moderation and becoming more physically active”, Mr Usamate added.

Another concern during the festive season is the consumption of alcohol which should be in moderation.

“It has been noted that excessive alcohol consumption leads to unnecessary spending, in some cases domestic violence and even road accidents”.

Bearing this in mind, the Health Ministry reminds all that ultimately, families and friends want to spend this festive season without any mishaps.

The Health Ministry reiterates that processed foods, meals with high sugar and salt, alcohol and soft drinks, must be consumed in moderation or avoided. While it is also important to increase water consumption and be more physically active.

Everyone is encouraged to focus on healthy living this festive season and the Health Ministry wishes all a healthy and merry Christmas.

Fiji will remain Polio Free

The Ministry of Health and Medical services will launch the improvised Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV) on the 17^th of this month to strengthen the fight against Polio.

Polio is caused by a virus that attacks the nervous system of young children in particular. The virus can paralyze and sometimes kill. There is no cure for polio, but vaccines can prevent the spread of the virus.

Fiji has remained polio free since the Western Pacific region was declared polio-free in 2000. The last laboratory confirmed polio case in Fiji was in 1958. However, all countries remain at risk of polio re-infection, until the disease is destroyed completely, everywhere. There are currently 10 countries in the world which are at risk.

Currently the vaccine for polio is Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV). Both OPV and IPV vaccines are very safe and protect children from paralysis, but in different ways.

OPV is a live vaccine that is taken orally in drops. IPV is given through an injection. OPV builds immunity in the gut. IPV provides immunity in the blood.

When used together, both OPV and IPV can stop the person-to-person spread of Polio. The Ministry of Health and Medical Services has endorsed the Polio End-Game Strategic Plan (2013-2018) also endorsed by the World Health Assembly.

Parents are advised to have their children immunized at 6, 10, and 14 weeks to protect them from Polio, as children under five years of age are most at risk of the virus if they are not fully vaccinated.

Health: More awareness on HIV

The Ministry of Health & Medical Services continues to create more awareness on HIV/AIDS in Fiji.

December 1^st marks World AIDS Day, and was observed last Tuesday with the theme “AIDS Will Lose”. The Hon. Minister for Health & Medical Services Mr Jone Usamate said that the prevention of HIV is important.

“The Health Ministry will continue to work closely with its partners in creating much needed awareness on HIV/AIDS”.

“It has been noted that the number of known new cases of HIV has slowly increased over the years owing to increased awareness for testing. There has also been an increased opportunity for screening through antenatal clinics and also during festivals/events. We also have the availability of testing at divisional hospitals and some subdivisional”, Mr Usamate added.

Minister Usamate also reminded the health staff to spread the message to friends and relatives so as to generate wider awareness.

Fiji is considered to be a low prevalence country for HIV/AIDS, as the estimated number of people living with HIV in Fiji is less than 1,000. The cumulative number of people diagnosed with HIV as of 30^th September 2015 is 647.

Regional Participants attend BioMed Workshop

10 participants were awarded their certificates after successfully completing 6 weeks of the Biomed workshop and attachment training at the Fiji Pharmaceutical and Biomedical services last week.

This Cold Chain Maintenance Project spearheaded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) under the South-South Cooperation project is aimed at providing training to medical officials in the maintenance of the refrigeration system for the preservation of the medicines in health facilities.

South–South Cooperation is a term historically used by policymakers and academics to describe the exchange of resources, technology, and knowledge between developing countries, also known as countries of the global South.

Fiji considers the introduction of South-South Cooperation (SSC) as being one way in which to offer support to our neighbouring countries and has requested assistance from Japan to support their initiative through establishing a mechanism for SSC.

Deputy Secretary Hospital Services at the Health Ministry Dr Luisa Cikamatana thanked JICA for the timely workshop as the workforce has been further strengthened.

The Program also included participants from Tuvalu, Kiribati and Nauru who will assist the medical departments in their respective countries to maintain refrigeration systems for storing medication.

Meanwhile, more technical training courses have been planned for the future, including for human resource development for Fiji and the neighboring countries.