Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD), remained neglected with no or little attention in Ghana. The NTDs promote poverty because patients are not able to engaged in a profitable economic activities and Ghana as a country cannot make progress without paying attention to it.
The Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are a diverse group of 21 conditions. They are 14 found in Ghana.
They include Lymphatic Filariasis commonly referred to us Elephantiasis, Onchocerciasis (river blindness), Schistosomiasis (bilharzia), Soil Transmitted Helminthes, Trachoma, Buruli ulcer, Dracunculiasis, Leprosy and Rabies among others are found in Ghana.
These diseases, hurt, can disable a person but preventable and treatable. Globally, NTDs affect 1.5 billion worldwide, 40% of cases from Africa.
According to World Health Organization (WHO), about 40% of the global NTDs burden occurs in Africa, accounting for 600 million affected people and up to 90% of these are caused by the 14 found in Ghana.
One of the noticeable NTDs is elephantiasis which has visible symptoms such as swollen leg of people affected.
Communities familiar with elephant likins elephantiasis because of the resemblance of the swollen leg like elephant leg.
According to the Ghana Health Service (GHS), NTDs is endemic in Ghana with every district at least with two NTDs cases. The number of patients nationwide, the service revealed stands about 5000 and about 2000 cases were in the five regions of north.
Statistics from the GHS revealed that out of 116 endemic districts in the country, 109 have met the criteria to stop Mass Drugs Administration (MDA). The diseases keep children out of school and parents out of work.
NTDs, according to the GHS, is endemic in poor communities and promotes poverty and intense stigma.
The NTDs Desk Officer explained that, the diseases are considered to be poor people diseases because of low-risk perception and do not attract so much attention unlike diseases considered as wealthy people diseases.
The risk perception of diseases such as covid 19 was very high and attracted the world attention.
Speaking to Zaa News, the Desk Officer for Lymphatic Filariasis in NTDs programat the Ghana Health Service, Mr Bright Alomatu said NTDs are almost absent from the global health agenda.
Mr Bright added, it is almost ignored by global funding agencies and are diseases of neglected populations. Mr Bright lamented about limited professional opportunities and persons with NTDs and the associated stigma and social exclusion.
This, he said, mostly affect the poor and there is lack of political voice, visibility couple with low mortality and low risk perception.
Northern Regional Director of the Ghana health service Dr Abukari Abdulai said the condition call for more advocacy and collaboration to ensure that transmission is limited and also manage people with the condition already.
Northern Regional Coordinator of NTDs, Mr Issahaku Adam called on the public not to stigmatized people with Elephantiasis and other NTDs.
Mr Adam said some of patients have committed suicide before because of the stigma and call on everyone to show them love and compassion.
Northern Regional Director of the National Health Insurance Authority, Alhassan Abdulai Nambili said considering the condition of people with NTDs, it makes them vulnerable and marginalize and they need to be captured by NHIS as indigenes for free service without them renewing their cards.
He explained that, the authority only relies on social welfare department and their stakeholders at district and community level to identified poor and needy people for NHIS for consideration.
Some of NTDs patients from Kumbungu district and Savelugu municipality, Adam Yahaya and Adamu Alhassan expressed worried about the stigma and discrimination associated with people the conditions.
According to them, anytime pain comes people do not want to get closer to them as if it is a transmitted disease.
The signs and symptoms of acute attack, the two patients explained starts with reddish with fever and uncontrollable excruciating pain. Mr Adam Yahaya who said his NHIS card expired explained that for him not to be discriminated among his peers, he has decided not to eat with his friends anymore.
Myths and misconceptions
Most of the NTDs are considered in society as cures, hereditary Elephantiasis is caused by infection with parasites known nematodes transmitted through anopheles mosquito bites.
However, some people believe people contract it when they step on the foot print of elephant or elephant feces.
Facts about LF
Infection is only through the mosquito, Infection is not hereditary, not transmitted through sex, not transmitted through contact. Most patients acquire the infection during childhood but didn’t show any sign until adulthood.
Most patients who do not longer have the parasites but are only living with the damage caused by the infection cannot spread the disease with others. Many individuals carrying the parasites are asymptomatic and don’t show any sign of the disease but can spread it.
Recommendations
The NTDs is gaining grounds in Ghana and silencing people with the conditions amidst stigma and discrimination and therefore need strong advocacy and funding support.
People in acute situations need to be encourage by trained psychologies to ensure that they do not contemplate committing suicides as a result stigma and discrimination some are currently going through.
Serious attention is also in the provision of Antibiotic treatment (good staph/strep coverage), symptomatic management: Analgesic, Anti-inflammatory medication as well as Antipyretics.
Supportive measures including rest, elevation, hydration, cooling the affected area and continued hygiene measures as tolerated should be considered critical, especially at the acute attack situation.
Finally, survivors of NTDs who have undergone surgery successfully, particularly penoscrotal lymphoedema and reconstruction of penis and scrotum with skin grafting should me made ambassadors for people of NTDs.
This can disabuse the minds of many who are still hiding their conditions in towns and villages for fear of losing their manhood and the stigma.
