By; PETER NOSAKHARE, Kaduna
As the world marks the Haemophilia Day, the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Federal Ministry of Health has been asked to help in the provision of prophylaxis to help prevent bleeds in persons with bleeding disorders instead of having to wait for donations from the World Federation Haemophilia (WFH) Humanitarian Aid Donation Programme.
This plea was made by Mrs. Megan Buckie Adediran, President/Executive Director of Haemophilia Foundation of Nigeria (HFN) in her welcome address to celebrate this year’s World Haemophilia Day held in Abuja on Monday April 17, 2023.
According to her, persons with bleeding disorders in Nigeria should be able to have treatment as someone in South Africa, Mauritius or Egypt.
She said the WFH standard is that the minimum needed for survival is one International Unit per Capita (1i.u) and that from the 2021 WFH Global Survey, the mean per capital of factor Viii use in each country is as follows: 3.97, 100 per cent of these purchase by their government; South Africa 1.037 100 percent purchased by their government same with Egypt 1.089 with 90 percent purchased by their government are 10 percent received as donation from WFH Humanitarian Aid Programme.
Mrs. Adediran stressed that Nigeria that stands at 0.0037, 100 per cent of the drugs come from the WFH Humanitarian Aid Donation Programme and that for the country to achieve the theme for the year, “Access for all: prevention of bleeds as the Global Standard of Care”, it is important to get the government to commit to the purchase of treatment products to complement WFH’s efforts.
“To get to 1iu per-capita, we need you all. In the world people with bleeding disorders are leading a good life and our local communities deserve that too”.
“As said by the WFH President Cesar Garrido, there’s nothing more move moving for someone in our community to hear about, than a child with a bleeding disorder playing with friends, going to school and enjoying a better quality of life because they have access to proper treatment”, she emphasized.
It would be recalled that April 17 of every year has been set aside to mark World Haemophilia Day to help support and create awareness for people living with bleedings disorders in our communities.
