By Kemo Cham
An Ebola vaccine candidate which was tried in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone has been found to provide 100 percent protection, raising hopes for a potential prevention of the deadly hemorrhagic fever disease, the World Health Organisation (WHO) announced Friday.
The experimental vaccine called rVSV ZEBOV was found to be effective against the virus in a trial in Guinea, details of the study published on the medical journal, the Lancet, earlier in the week show.
By Mohamed T Massaquoi
The Police Family Support Unit (FSU) in Pujehun District is currently investigating an alleged sexual abuse case involving a three-year old girl.
By Kemo Cham
Vaccine preventable diseases are killing an unacceptably high number of people despite recent gains in immunization, a group of experts has warned.
The African Regional Immunization Technical Advisory Group (RITAG), which comprises immunization experts, said tangible actions were required to stem the tide of vaccine preventable diseases in the WHO African Region. They made the call in a statement at the end of a 2-day meeting last week in the Senegalese capital, Dakar. That forum discussed the state of immunization in the region.
By Kemo Cham
At the present rate of spread of Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in Africa, deaths from them are likely to surpass those from infectious diseases by 2030, a new research has revealed.
The research estimates that deaths from NCDs will reach 44 million within the next four years, representing an increase of 15 percent from 2010 figures.
By Kemo Cham
Despite progress in reduction of transmission and deaths due to Malaria, Sierra Leone remains one of the worst affected by the disease, the latest report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) has revealed.
WHO’s World Malaria Report 2016, released on Tuesday December 13, reveals that nearly 3 in 10 Sierra Leoneans were infected by the parasitic disease, making the country one of the world’s highest burdens of malaria cases.
By Kemo Cham
A renowned Sierra Leonean scientist has called for greater involvement of academic institutions in the country in research, citing its inalienable role in facilitating development.
Professor Ousman Sankoh, the Executive Director of the German headquartered INDEPTH network, urged fellow academics to embrace research saying it’s the bed rock of development and could be a source of financing for the country’s cash trapped universities.
By Mohamed T. Massaquoi
Two police officers in the eastern Pujehun District are under investigation over alleged involvement in a case of gang rape.
The men are accused of raping a fellow female police officer.
They have been suspended pending investigation, according to a senior police officer.
Supported by: Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA)
