SSMJ August 2023

Editorials

South Sudan Doctors’ Union calls for increased health sector budget

The South Sudan Doctors’ Union (SSDU) recently made submissions to the National Legislative Assembly to strongly advocate for an increase in the health sector budget from the current 2.1% to at least 15% of the total national budget for 2023-2024. This call is in line with WHO recommendations and the Abuja Declaration by the African Union Heads of State to achieve Universal Health Coverage.

News, Reports and Policy

Salisbury Sudan Medical Link visit to Western Equatoria

Since 1972, the Salisbury Diocese has been linked with the Episcopal Church of Sudan, and since 2011 with the Episcopal Church of Sudan and South Sudan (ECSS). It is one of the oldest Diocesan Links set up by the then Bishop of Salisbury George Reindorp and his colleagues in Sudan.

Obituary: Sister Petronella Wawa – the visionary and mentor

“Her death is a loss to the nurses and midwives and the entire health fraternity. A great loss to our delivering mothers and newborns. South Sudan has lost a leader,”

WHO urges immediate skin to skin contact for babies born prematurely

May 2023. WHO has launched new guidelines to improve survival and health outcomes for babies born early (before 37 weeks of pregnancy) or small (under 2.5kg at birth). The guidelines advise that skin to skin contact with a caregiver should start immediately after birth.

Clinical Guidance

How to evaluate and improve a medical education programme

The evaluation of any medical education programme is an important and continuous task. The information gathered will inform strategic decision making and programme improvement. Using an established and widely recognised evaluation model helps structure and support the process.

Research

Hepatitis B chronic infection among pregnant women attending the antenatal care in Bor State Referral Hospital, South Sudan

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) virus that belongs to the family of Hepadnaviridae that causes acute and chronic diseases of the liver. HBV infection is a dangerous worldwide public health problem, which usually affects the liver and may cause acute hepatitis, fulminant hepatitis, hepatic encephalopathy and chronic conditions like liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Pattern of liver enzymes and maternal outcome in eclamptic patients admitted to the Intensive Care Unit, University College Hospital, Nigeria

Eclampsia is one of the clinical manifestations of a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists guidelines include elevation of liver enzymes as a criterion for the diagnosis of pre-eclampsia/eclampsia. The difference between pre-eclampsia and eclampsia is that a woman with eclampsia has had a seizure.

Hoarseness of voice and accompanying symptoms among patients at a tertiary hospital, Tanzania

Hoarseness of voice is the disturbance of normal voice pitch by an abnormal vibration of the vocal cords, it is a term used to describe an unnaturally harsh, rough or deep voice. It is a common symptom in otolaryngological practice and it is an early manifestation of a large variety of conditions directly or indirectly affecting the larynx, ranging from inflammatory to malignant.

Prevalence of middle ear effusion among children with adenoid hypertrophy at a national referral hospital in Tanzania

Middle ear effusion (MEE) is a common childhood disorder characterized by the presence of fluid in the middle ear which causes hearing impairment due to reduced ability of the middle ear to conduct sound. This necessitates prompt and appropriate management to avoid the associated complications of speech and learning delay which is detrimental to the quality of life of affected children who are mostly of pre-school age.

Case Reports

No documents found.

Summaries

A medical survey among the Twi Dinka in 1930

The method of survey was that after vaccinating a batch of people, they filed past one by one, were counted and any defects noted and any requiring or asking for treatment were put on one side and examined further. In addition, all children up to the age of approximately twelve years were examined for enlargement of the spleen.

Letter to the editor: Concerns about describing community staff in South Sudan

I am writing in response to the article by Ajingdit et al, published in the May 2023 issue of SSMJ, on essential medicines in a sample of primary health care units and primary health care centres. What an important subject and how useful it is to look at the day-to-day practical work in health facilities of South Sudan.