Surgeons performs open surgery

In unprecedented move, surgeons at Dar es Salaam based Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute (JKCI) have successfully performed 16 open heart surgeries open surgery in which nine children and seven adults including a nine month old toddler were operated. The operation was successful in collaboration with Open Heart International (OHI) from Australia. This was during a one-week heart surgery organized at JKCI. The Institution’s Executive Director, Dr Mohamed Janabi, said in Dar es Salaam on Thursday that, the nine-month old toddler was from Magu District, Mwanza Region; she was born with dextrocardia, a rare heart condition in which the heart points toward the right side of the chest instead of left side. For the first time, we have successfully conducted a surgery to a toddler whose heart is on theright side and the four chambers were similar also her body colour turned to blue,” he noted. Dr Janabi said during the surgery, they have been able to protect her lungs which were receiving a lot of blood from heart veins and implant, a pacemaker to help manage her irregular heartbeats. Paediatric Cardiac Surgeon at JKCI, Dr Godwin Sharau said the problem was not being born with such condition, but the functionality of heart matters the most, as once they received the toddler they observed her heart veins were not working. Dr Godwin said before the camp, nursing care course was conducted to equip nurses with best skills to handle patients admitted to Intensive Care Unit (ICU). “The aim of this mission is to upgrade our skills, to make sure we align with other surgeons worldwide as technology changes every day and learn better ways to handle complex heart problems,” he noted. Expounding further, he said they have conducted Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG) to adult patients and changed two to three aortic and mitral valves which were not working properly. For children, we have conducted surgery to those whose heart chambers are not complete. He said the surgery was performed to children aged four months to four years; they have conducted preliminary surgery preparing them for the next one. Director of OHI, Mr Russel Lee said it was such an honour for JKCI to embrace them as well as exciting to see progress in the surgeries conducted at the institute. “We have been working with paediatric team for quite some time now as we want to make sure Tanzanians get this kind of treatment within the country,” said Mr Lee. Mr Lee further said that in the coming years, they would prefer to expand their services by supporting other areas of biomedical engineering and people running sterilisation. Dr Janabi urged all dispensaries, district and regional hospitals in the country to refer any child to JKCI whenever they observe they have heart problems like what Bugando hospital did to make sure the toddler celebrates her first birthday healthy. He also made a call to community members to donate blood as much as possible to save lives of patients admitted to the institute; most of them need a lot of blood.

India promises soft loan to curb water woes in Tanzania

The government of India has promised to avail to Tanzania a soft loan of 500m US dollars for the implementation of water projects in 17 towns in the country. The soft loan is set to be processed through India’s Exim Bank. Tanzania’s Minister for Finance and Planning, Dr Philip Mpango said yesterday during his meeting with the Indian High Commissioner to Tanzania, Mr Sandeep Arya, that the loan is aimed at resolving water woes in the country so that people could access clean and safe water in their communities. He said that the projects will also boost economic activities in the country. “We are still engaged in negotiations; we are also going through criteria posed by Exim Bank, which need the company that will execute the projects to enjoy tax exemption,” he said. He further clarified that, the criteria to select the company will be done through observing the laws of the land, the government is working on the matter and soon it will come up with a solution on it to facilitate the implementation of the projects. “We recognize the contribution of India in the water sector to the country as they are currently implementing a big water project in Lake Victoria, which is aimed at connecting water from Shinyanga to Tabora,” he noted. Dr Mpango also asked India to continue supporting Tanzania in various areas including Information and Communication Technology (ICT), so as to get experts who will help bring development to the country. He said India is more advanced in the area of ICT and that it would be better if it will invest in the area in Tanzania and thus help ‘people to engage in various activities including industrial development. “We cannot move forward without skilled people in various areas including experts in ICT,” said Dr Mpango. He mentioned areas for investment as agriculture, tourism, health and many others. The Indian High Commissioner to Tanzania, Mr Arya said his country focuses at investing in agriculture, solar energy and help in the construction of Dodoma capital as well as roads and railway. He said Tanzania and India have a long history and that his country will continue to invest in various areas in Tanzania.

Kidney sufferers now gets a relief in Tanzania

AS the first patient to undergo kidney operation at the Muhimbili National Hospital (MNH) the biggest ever hospital in country was discharged on Thursday this week, specialists have assured the public that the hospital is now equipped to conduct safe and successful surgeries. This has actually given a relief for  kidney sufferers in the country who now will have access to the medical treatment over the disease in the country. Unlike before, such treatments were rare. Last week, Tanzania’s health sector opened a new chapter with the first kidney transplant, which was successfully performed to a 30-year old lady at the national health facility. The specialists also took the opportunity to advise those who are hesitant to donate their kidney not to be terrified since it has no side effects. “Signing up to be a donor can be one of the most impactful things you can ever do, just look at how itwould change the lives of those on the waiting list; we thank God our first surgery was successful in our country,” said Nephrologist at MNH, Dr Jacqueline Shoo. Dr Shoo said people can live normal lives with only one kidney as long as the donor is evaluated thoroughly and cleared for donation, he or she can lead a normal life after the surgery. When they remove one kidney does not imply it is the end of life. All costs of the surgery were paid by the government which amounted to 21m/- while if the patient had been flown abroad, more than 80-100m/- could have been used for the same purpose. On 21 November 2017, specialists at MNH in collaboration with BLK Supper Specialist Hospital of India performed the first kidney transplant to Prisca Mwingira, a teacher at Mikese Secondary School in Morogoro Region. The donor of the kidney was a 27-year old man, who is the patient’s brother, Batholomeyo Mwingira. Since it was the first case, the specialist did not choose a high-risk patient. The retrieval and the kidney transplant which are two different surgeries took place simultaneously. Dr Shoo said the patient was suffering from end-stage kidney disease and had been on haemodialysis for over a year. “Today, we have allowed her to go home, both donor and recipient are recuperating well and should return to normal activities, the patient can urinate normally and eat normally; the patient should focus on hygiene, taking medications as directed and eating foods counselled,” said Dr Shoo. Ms Mwingira while shading tears said it was such an honour to be given a second chance by God and thanked the government, surgeons and his brother. “As you can see me now I am in good health and can go on with my routine, as usual, I thank my brother for his heart to donate a kidney for me,” she said. She further said that at times, she gave up but doctors were always there to encourage her, other patients undergoing dialysis should not give up as there was hope for them within the country. Expounding further, she said the government should keep on supporting MNH to conduct more surgeries and save people’s lives without going abroad. The preparation for the first transplant began a year ago, with the training of 33 doctors from Tanzania in New Delhi. A Nephrologist at MNH, Dr Onesmo Kissanga, said they have 56 kidney patients in their department waiting for transplant services. “About 60 to 70 patients undergoing dialysis at the facility are in need of such services which is the best option; we are glad that the first transplant is a success,” he noted.

Lukuvi launches land use plan in Serengeti

The Minister four Land, Housing and Human Settlements Development William Lukuvi has launched the land use plan to be accessed by both local and foreigners with a view to foster investments in Serengeti district. Execution of the plan, under the Serengeti Ecosystem Development and Conservation Project (SEDCP), is supported by Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS) and Tanzania National Parks (TANAPA) under the auspices of the Germany government through KfW Development Bank. The project beneficiaries are villages bordering the Serengeti National Park (SENAPA) and Ikorongo/ Grumeti Game reserves in Western Serengeti. Mr Lukuvi welcomed the programme, which he said supports government efforts to transform the lives of citizens. “These are good plans to foster investments and reduce conflicts... the government gives them priority in assisting the citizens,” said Mr Lukuvi. The District Executive Director (DED) Engineer Juma Hamsini told the Minister that some 1.3bn/- has been allocated to support the programme in Serengeti and Ngorongoro districts. He said villagers in the targeted areas would be fully involved in deciding the contents of the plans. Eng Hamsini said introduction of land use plans in the villages will help to reduce rising human/wildlife conflicts and attract more investments, among other things. Mara Regional Commissioner (RC) Adam Malima welcomed the project, which will also be replicated in Ngorongoro district. The Germany headquartered FZS is an international conservation organisation with immense support to conservation projects in Tanzania. The presence of FZS in the country for over 50 years now has had great contribution to ensure that Serengeti ecology remains intact.

Tanzania records a slight drop of HIV infections

As Tanzania joined other nations in the world to mark the World AIDS Day which is an annual celebrations that is marked on 1^st December, a new report has revealed that the country has recorded a slight drop on HIV/ AIDS infection rate in the past five years. Speaking during the launch of the Tanzania HIV/AIDS Indicator Survey 2016/2017 in Dar es Salaam yesterday, Vice- President, Ms Samia Suluhu Hassan, said that the government has made strides in fighting against the epidemic. Ms Hassan said according to the findings, HIV/AIDS infection rate in the country has dropped from 5.1 per cent in 2011/2012 to 4.7 per cent in 2016/2017. She said according to the survey, it is estimated that 1.4 million Tanzanians are living with HIV/AIDS, with female infection rate standing at 6.5 per cent while for males is 3.5 per cent. The VP insisted that the decline on infection rate does not mean that HIV/ AIDS has been stamped out, but that it is the result of efforts undertaken by the government in collaboration with other stakeholders, including citizens in taking preventive measures against new infections. “The study which we are launching today has shown a decline on HIV/AIDS infection rate from 5.1 per cent in 2011/2012 to 4.7 per cent in 2016/2017. This is the result of joint efforts between the government, citizens and different stakeholders who have concentrated on creating public awareness and services on HIV/AIDS issues,” she said. Ms Hassan, however, called upon the citizens and other stakeholders to continue supporting the government in preventing new infections and voluntarily contribute to the National HIV/ AIDS Fund to enable the government provide better services. Briefing about the survey, the National Bureau of Statistics Director General, Dr Albina Chuwa, said that it was the fourth to be done in the country and that the first one was conducted in 2003/04, which indicated that infection rate was 7.0 per cent followed by other studies of 2007/08 and 2011/12 which showed the infection rate of 5.1 per cent. Dr Chuwa explained that the 2016/17 survey has been different because it has given estimates of the infection rate to all age groups and new infections among others. She said the survey involved 16,198 households and cost 7.4bn/- which was provided by the US government under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief - (PEPFAR). Dr Chuwa mentioned the regions whose infection rate is more than 10 per cent as Iringa (11.3) and Njombe (11.4), while all regions in Zanzibar recording less than one per cent infection rate.