Four Years Since COVID-19 Day Zero: A Time to Evaluate Past and Future Pandemic Control Policies and Practices in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Four years after the first case of COVID-19, the world is still determining how best to prevent and control the long-term effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) were employed at the start of the pandemic as the only available options, prior to effective vaccines and antiviral agents. The World Health Organization recommended dual vaccination for 70% worldwide as the threshold for a return to "normal" community life.

Migration of highly-skilled workers: personal perspectives.

Recently, one of the authors and his family migrated from Nigeria to take up employment in the United States of America and the other from Spain to the United Kingdom. Both journeys have been ones of mixed feelings, as we have both reaped rewards, but have experienced significant hardships. The migration of skilled workers has been ongoing for centuries and seems set to continue.

Stimulating maximum staff performance in cross-functional and multiracial work environments: personal perspectives.

In a world where there is added stress on healthcare systems, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, we acknowledge that healthcare systems around the globe often run in a dysfunctional way at the best of times. In this article, we identify some of the issues that surround workers´ dissatisfaction including lack of open, accountable, transparent, and honest management. We examine the theories behind a more accountable work environment and examine the potential for improved worker productivity as a result of physical, emotional, mental, intellectual, and spiritual wellbeing.

Describing the Epidemiology of COVID-19 in Nigeria: An Analysis of the First Year of the Pandemic.

We report the COVID-19 experience across Nigeria from March 2020 to March 2021. Demographics were obtained from Nigerian Centre for Disease Control. By 21 March 2021, 161,737 people were confirmed positive for SARS-COV-2.

Perceptions and opinions of Nigerians to the management and response to COVID-19 in Nigeria.

Introduction: we present a qualitative analysis of opinions of the Nigerian general public as to how successful healthcare strategies have been in containing the COVID-19 outbreak.

Methods: an online qualitative survey was conducted, consisting of 30 semi-structured questions.

Results: four hundred and ninety-five (495) respondents participated, ranging in age from 18 to 59 years.

Possible Reasons Why Sub-Saharan Africa Experienced a Less Severe COVID-19 Pandemic in 2020.

Both scientific authorities and governments of nations worldwide were found lacking in their COVID-19 response and management, resulting in significant distrust by the general public in 2020. Scientific and medical bodies often failed to give the right counsel on the appropriate course of action on COVID-19, because proven steps were not known, while many governments around the world took ineffective, late or inappropriate COVID-19 control and containment strategies. If the 2020 COVID-19 incidence rates are to be believed, much of sub-Saharan Africa had a lower disease prevalence than expected.

Klamath Tribal Response to the Pandemic of COVID-19 Among Klamath Tribal Community in Oregon, USA.

Introduction: Socially-disadvantaged populations are more at risk of contracting COVID-19 than those with access to better medical facilities. We looked at responses of Klamath Tribes in Oregon, USA to mitigate spread of COVID-19 in a community with a higher incidence of obesity, diabetes and coronary heart disease, compared to the general US population. This study reports on Klamath Tribes response to COVID-19 March -September 2020.

Community Psychiatry Care: An Urgent Need in Nigeria.

Nigeria's mental health policy was formulated in 1991, but it did not make adequate provision for community-based psychiatric care. Since there are only seven government-owned psychiatry facilities in Nigeria and these are always overwhelmed, there is the need to overhaul the existing policy and emphasise the urgency of a shift from inpatient psychiatric mental healthcare towards a community-based multidisciplinary psychiatric healthcare system.

Public perception of COVID-19 management and response in Nigeria: a cross-sectional survey.

Objectives: A study designed to assess the public perception of the response of government and its institutions to the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria.

Setting: Self-selecting participants throughout Nigeria completed a self-administered questionnaire through an online cross-sectional survey.

Participants: 495.

Opportunities and challenges to integrating mental health into HIV programs in a low- and middle-income country: insights from the Nigeria implementation science Alliance.

Background: In Nigeria, there is an estimated 1.9 million people living with HIV (PLHIV), 53% of whom utilize HIV care and services. With decreasing HIV-related deaths and increasing new infections, HIV with its associated comorbidities continue to be a key public health challenge in Nigeria.

COVID-19 Experience: Taking the Right Steps at the Right Time to Prevent Avoidable Morbidity and Mortality in Nigeria and Other Nations of the World.

The 2020 Coronavirus pandemic has caused countless governmental and societal challenges around the world. Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, has been exposed in recent years to a series of epidemics including Ebola and Lassa fever. In this paper, we document our perception of the national response to COVID-19 in Nigeria.

Challenges and Strategies for Improving Training of Mid-Level Research Personnel in Nigeria.

Background: Contextual research evidence is needed to reduce morbidity and mortality due to chronic but preventable diseases in low- and middle-income countries. Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is particularly burdened by these diseases despite its academic and research infrastructure. A major impediment to developing robust evidence on sustainable disease prevention and treatment strategies is the lack of skilled research personnel.

Revisiting public health programming in Nigeria: challenges and solutions.

Public health programming has three main components - capacity development, service provision and documentation with monitoring. However, most funders and programmers now focus on just documentation and monitoring. In this communication, the authors extensively discuss the need for the full complement of public health programming and why it is important to restructure supportive site visits to make them both empowering and impactful to the health care workers resulting in higher quality of public health services and documentation with monitoring.

Premarital sex and condom use among trainee healthcare workers: an exploratory study of selected healthcare training institutions in Enugu State, Nigeria.

Introduction: To assess the prevalence and causes of premarital sex and condom use among trainee healthcare workers in selected healthcare institutions in Enugu State, Nigeria; and to proffer solution to challenges identified.

Methods: We used a mixed study approach with qualitative and quantitative components. Informed consent was obtained from participants and data collected using self-administered structured questionnaires.

Health: redefined.

For many years the definition of 'health' has remained unchanged as a narrow concept, encompassing physical wellbeing from a medical context. This somewhat focused definition has attracted criticism from individuals and professional bodies alike. Recent attempts have been made to redefine health, each offering an alternative viewpoint from sociological, environmental, societal and economic standpoints.

Assessment of the effectiveness of PMTCT program in eight service delivery points in North Central Nigeria.

Background: Mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV is one of the commonest avenues through which infants are infected with HIV. To achieve an HIV-free generation, MTCT of HIV should be eliminated. Nigeria began prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) services 13 years ago, but it still contributes to over one-third of global MTCT burden.

Healthcare workers' industrial action in Nigeria: a cross-sectional survey of Nigerian physicians.

Background: The Nigerian health system has been plagued with numerous healthcare worker strikes (industrial action) at all levels. The purpose of this study is to document physicians' views on healthcare worker-initiated strike action in Nigeria and represent a follow-on to a previous study where poor leadership and management were cited as the most common cause of strike action by healthcare workers.

Methods: A cross-sectional, descriptive study was executed between April and June 2017.

Is malaria over-diagnosed? A world malaria day 2017 experience by Excellence and Friends Management Care Centre (EFMC) and partners, Abuja Nigeria.

Malaria remains a major cause of mortality across the world, but particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. WHO-sponsored World Malaria Day activity has helped to improve education and has contributed to a reduction in mortality globally in the past decade. However, much needs to be done still in Africa.

Public private partnership in in-service training of physicians: the millennium development goal 6-partnership for African clinical training (M-PACT) approach.

Introduction: in-service training of healthcare workers is essential for improving healthcare services and outcome.

Methods: The Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 6 Partnership for African Clinical Training (M-PACT) program was an innovative in-service training approach designed and implemented by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) and West African College of Physicians (WACP) with funding from Eco Bank Foundation. The goal was to develop sustainable capacity to tackle MDG 6 targets in West Africa through better postgraduate medical education.

Gaps and strategies in developing health research capacity: experience from the Nigeria Implementation Science Alliance.

Background: Despite being disproportionately burdened by preventable diseases than more advanced countries, low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) continue to trail behind other parts of the world in the number, quality and impact of scholarly activities by their health researchers. Our strategy at the Nigerian Implementation Science Alliance (NISA) is to utilise innovative platforms that catalyse collaboration, enhance communication between different stakeholders, and promote the uptake of evidence-based interventions in improving healthcare delivery. This article reports on findings from a structured group exercise conducted at the 2016 NISA Conference to identify (1) gaps in developing research capacity and (2) potential strategies to address these gaps.

A time for new north-south relationships in global health.

The modern concept of globalization in health care and clinical research often carries a positive message for the "Global South" nations of Africa, South America and Southeast Asia. However, bioethical abuse of participants in clinical trials still exists in the Global South. Unethical studies directed by the "Global North", formed by the medically advanced nations in North America, Western Europe and Japan, have been hugely concerning.

Individual and socioeconomic factors associated with childhood immunization coverage in Nigeria.

Introduction: Immunization is the world's most successful and cost-effective public health intervention as it prevents over 2 million deaths annually. However, over 2 million deaths still occur yearly from Vaccine preventable diseases, the majority of which occur in sub-Saharan Africa. Nigeria is a major contributor of global childhood deaths from VPDs.

From decentralization to commonization of HIV healthcare resources: keys to reduction in health disparity and equitable distribution of health services in Nigeria.

Access to quality care is essential for improved health outcomes. Decentralization improves access to healthcare services at lower levels of care, but it does not dismantle structural, funding and programming restrictions to access, resulting in inequity and inequality in population health. Unlike decentralization, Commonization Model of care reduces health inequalities and inequity, dismantles structural, funding and other program related obstacles to population health.