Experts urge strengthening of healthcare systems to curb malaria

Experts have urged the government to strengthen healthcare systems and increase local investments in research for new drugs, vaccines and mosquito control methods to combat antimalarial resistance and vector resistance.

Medical Doctor from Orthopaedic Hospital Igbobi, Lagos, Dr Olubunmi Apata, who spoke at the ‘Swim Against Malaria’, organised by the Swimming Section of the Lagos County Club held in Lagos, advised the government to prioritise investment in the purchase and distribution of vaccines to most at-risk population, which is the children under the age of five and reduce the 78 per cent death burden on this population.

“The government has to invest in measures to prevent malaria, such as regular education of the public through official mass media platforms, free provision of insecticide-treated nets for all children and pregnant women with a specific focus on those disadvantaged communities, internally displaced camps, and conflict zones.

“The current challenge of the soaring cost of investigations and drugs must also be tackled by government setting benchmarks on fees for malaria tests including rapid diagnostic test kits and malaria drugs,” Apata said.

“There is a need for enrollment of Nigerians on health insurance schemes using the social intervention funds for vulnerable people. There have been innovations in research, such as the malaria vaccine, and the government at all levels must collaborate with stakeholders in deployment, monitoring and evaluation of the efficacy of these vaccines.”

To prevent malaria, Apata, said people need to keep their environment clean and void of stagnant water, and every breeding site of mosquitoes. He said people should sleep under long-lasting insecticide-treated nets to avoid bites from mosquitoes and use indoor residual sprays and insecticides to clear off mosquitoes indoors.

In terms of signs and symptoms of malaria, he said sometimes it’s like other illnesses, hence why it is highly, recommended to always get tested to confirm the presence of malaria before treatment.

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He said some of the common symptoms of malaria include, nausea, dizziness, headaches, vomiting, loss of appetite, fever, and lots more, while in severe cases of malaria, symptoms include extreme fatigue, convulsions, and severe headache.

Apata said there should be an investment in the environment by ensuring clean drainages and cleaning gutters amongst others, is a big area that must not be neglected, as it continues to act as a breeding ground for the spread of malaria, and climate change is worsening the situation.

He said there should be also a need to engage in awareness campaigns on malaria prevention. “By engaging communities in malaria control efforts through community-based interventions this knowledge gap could be greatly reduced and thousands of deaths prevented,” he said.

The Swimming Section Chairman, Ayodeji Osikoya, called for strategies to prevent mosquito bites. He said malaria can be reduced by preventing mosquito bites as the vector transmitting the plasmodium parasite causes malaria.

Osikoya explained that the swim against malaria is a global event, and the club is committed to ensuring healthcare quality of members. A member of the planning committee, Dr Laja Adesina, said the fight against malaria is everybody’s business and not only government. “We must all come together to prevent malaria in our communities and avoid self-medication by ensuring testing before treatment,” Adesina added.