UCC Supports Push to Control Schistosomiasis and Fgs Along Kakum River

The Biomedical and Clinical Research Centre, University of Cape Coast, has held a stakeholder meeting on a project titled: “Integrated schistosomiasis and FGS Control along the Kakum River.”

The project is aimed at achieving a 35% reduction in the burden of schistosomiasis in targeted communities along the Kakum River through the use of coordinated educational, medical, and social interventions.

In this light, the Centre is training nurses within Esuekyir, Akotokyer, and Kwaprow communities to diagnose schistosomiasis. The Centre would also train the frontline nurses on the use of Praziquantel for the treatment of all forms of schistosomiasis.

The Director of the Biomedical and Clinical Research Centre, Prof. Samuel Kyei, made this known during an inception meeting with stakeholders of the schistosomiasis control project.

He said the primary strategy for controlling schistosomiasis in Ghana had been mass drug administration (MDA) with Praziquantel, as the World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended.

According to him, the approach, implemented in 2008, had successfully reduced infection rates.

However, he noted that despite these efforts, Ghana remained highly endemic for schistosomiasis with nearly a quarter of Ghanaians infected.

He, therefore, urged all stakeholders in the affected communities, as well as implementers of the project findings, to ensure they implemented the findings to get the best benefits from the resources invested in the project.

Source: Documentation and Information Section-UCC