Position Available: (Paediatric) Nurse Educator...

Welbodi Partnership is recruiting a nurse educator, with significant experience in maternal and child health, to support the well-established nurses’ training office at the Ola During Children’s Hospital (ODCH) in Freetown, Sierra Leone. In addition, the (paediatric) nurse educator will help establish a nurse/midwife training office at the neighboring Princess Christian Maternity Hospital (PCMH) as well as support the newly established Paediatric Nurse Specialist training at the College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences (COMAHS).

This rewarding position offers a unique opportunity to be involved in the development of human and institutional capacity, crucial for the rebuilding of the health system in Sierra Leone, with a focus in improving maternal, neonatal and child health.

The successful candidate will be employed and managed by the Welbodi Partnership, a UK registered charity, based at the Ola During Children’s Hospital since 2009. Welbodi Partnership works with the Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MOHS) to support the development of ODCH and PCMH with the aim to improve maternal, neonatal and child health outcomes in Sierra Leone.

PLEASE GO TO THE ADVERTISEMENT ON THE WELBODI PARTNERSHIP BLOG FOR MORE DETAILS: 

http://www.welbodipartnership.blogspot.com/2014/06/position-available-paediatric-nurse_28.html

Please distribute this notice widely to those who might be interested in this great opportunity to help us improve maternal and neonatal healthcare in Sierra Leone

Efforts to fight Ebola in Sierra Leone...

It was too good to be true that the Ebola outbreak in neighboring countries, Guinea and Liberia, would be contained and stay out of Sierra Leone.  On Monday, the 26th of May, Ebola was confirmed in Sierra Leone, in Kailahun district, a few miles from the Guinea border, quite near the epicenter of the outbreak in Guinea. This is a serious concern. 

The Ministry of Health and Sanitation's Ebola Task Force has been meeting on a daily basis with the aim of turning the nation's Ebola preparedness plan into a response plan. The task force created sub-committees to focus on elements key to outbreak response such as: laboratory, surveillance, coordination, logistics, case management and communication. The committees report to the task force and decisions are made. 

Welbodi Partnership, as well as some other key NGO's such as King's Sierra Leone Partners, Emergency Surgical Centre and MSF and other agencies, joined the case management committee in order to support the Ministry in fighting this battle. Yesterday we were in non-stop meetings from 1pm - 6pm to finalize plans. And this is just the beginning. Next comes the ongoing efforts to follow through with plans. And, for Welbodi Partnership, we will continue supporting the Children's and Maternity Hospitals in establishing/running their isolation units and providing logistical support to the hospitals' Ebola Coordinators as well as maintain the link between the hospitals and the Ministry. We will also be involved with training of healthcare staff to ensure that they are well informed about the preventive measures they need to take.  

Of course, with an outbreak like this also comes a lot of unnecessary drama, especially a lot of mis-information. The Ministry is, rightfully so, concerned with some of the information that has been published on the internet/social media. So, for the record, all statistics reported here will be taken directly from the information released by Sierra Leone's Ministry of Health and Sanitation. As of the 30th of May there were 14 confirmed cases, all of which were in Kailahun district. There are no cases anywhere else in the country. There were a few suspected cases in Freetown, but they were all NEGATIVE. Let's hope that this disease will be contained and not spread further than Kailahun district. 

For information directly from the Ministry of Health and Sanitation you can go to their facebook page: 

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ministry-of-Health-and-Sanitation-Sierra-Leone/281064805403702

Position available: Project Manager - Maternal and Neonatal Health Project

Welbodi Partnership is recruiting a Project Manager for its new Maternal and Neonatal Health Project in Freetown, Sierra Leone. This is an exciting opportunity to make a difference in healthcare in West Africa.

Here's a quick preview:

Welbodi Partnership’s maternal and neonatal health project comprises two complementary interventions: engagement with women in the urban communities of the Western Area and health system strengthening initiatives to improve the quality and accessibility of essential obstetric and neonatal healthcare services at PCMH. 

The application deadline is June 15th, 2014.

If you, are someone you know is interested, please see the following link for details: 
http://welbodipartnership.blogspot.com/2014/05/position-available-project-manager-for.html 

Position Available: Consultant Paediatrician - Head of Training - Ola During Children's Hospital

The Ministry of Health and Sanitation in Sierra Leone is recruiting for an available position of a Consultant Paediatrician to serve as Head of Training at the Ola During Children’s Hospital in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Position Available: ConsultantPaediatrician – Head of Training

Location: Ola During Children’s Hospital (ODCH), Freetown, Sierra Leone

Reports to: Medical Superintendent, Ola During Children’s Hospital

Supervises: Medical Officers, Residents, House officers, and Medical Students            

Contract length: 12 months, with possibility of extension subject to funding availability and satisfactory performance

Start Date: As soon as possible

Remuneration: Competitive, to be discussed with the selected candidate

Application deadline: 4^th June 2014

The Ola During Children’s Hospital is the national children’s hospital located in the eastern part of Freetown with approximately 10,000 admissions per year. The hospital provides medical care for neonates and children from the Western Area but also serves as the only tertiary referral centre for paediatrics for the country. The hospital was granted temporary accreditation by the West African College of Physicians in November 2013. As a Consultant Paediatrician – Head of Training you would have a direct and significant impact on the quality of care provided at the Children’s Hospital and play a crucial role in the development of Sierra Leone’s first ever postgraduate training programme, producing the country’s future leaders in child health.

Please see the full terms of reference and application details here:

Terms of Reference

Application Form 

Please distribute this notice widely to those who might be interested in this great opportunity to help improve child healthcare in Sierra Leone.

Applications

Application deadline: 4^th June 2014

Applicants are welcomed from all nationalities, including Sierra Leoneans at home or in the diaspora.

In accordance with equality and diversity policy and child protection policies, successful candidates for this position will require a Disclosure and Barring (DBS) check, or national equivalent. We will comply fully with the DBS Code of Practice and undertake to treat all applicants for positions fairly.

Please complete and email the application form, accompanied by a CV to Dr. Sandra Lako, email: jobs@welbodipartnership.org 

CVs and cover letters will not be accepted for this position without a duly completed application form.

Only those applicants shortlisted for an interview will be notified.

Tribute to Oma...

My grandmother (oma) passed away last week and yesterday we laid her body to rest. The funeral was a special time in which we remembered her time here on earth and said our final goodbyes.

Oma was a great grandmother. She was both caring and showed a lot of concern; sometimes maybe a little too much of the latter as she was very cautious and wanted us to be too :) . However, Oma was very much involved in our lives, even though we were often many miles away. She stayed up to date on our latest news, she used to email and send us cards and she kept track of my blog. Even until recently she still had people read to her from my blog. She enjoyed seeing us and always looked forward to phone calls and visits. She loved us and she was proud of each one of us. 

As a child I have great memories of my grandparents even though we were not able to see them often due to us living abroad. I remember sleepovers at their house, going to the petting zoo, picking berries, playing with lots of toys up in their attic, sled riding, story telling, yummy food, and more. One of my favorite most recent memories is the times that I would pray with oma during my visits with her before heading back to Africa. It was a time in which we prayed for each other for encouragement and strength. My grandma had a great faith in God.

After my grandfather passed away in October 2010 my grandmother was quite lonely. In most recent years/months, her health started deteriorating and her eye sight especially got worse to the point that she was totally blind for the last 6-9 months she was alive. This isolated her even more. When I saw my grandmother in January, she told me that she was ready to be with Jesus. And she was ready. I can now celebrate with her that she is with her Savior. I like to imagine that oma is in heaven with my opa and that she can see again. It is well with her soul. 

I love you oma. Goodbye for now, but I will see you again someday.

Ebola: slowly getting prepared...

There are still no confirmed Ebola cases in Sierra Leone! We are happy for that.

Yesterday I was unsuccessful in moving things forward at the hospital as far as Ebola preparation goes. Today, however, was a breakthrough. My colleague, Kate, and I had a meeting with 6 people from both the Children's and Maternity hospitals to discuss our preparedness plans. We ended the meeting with a walk to the radiology building, which is pretty much only being used for ultrasound. (Our digital x-ray is set up elsewhere since this building was supposed to be demolished a year ago). It was decided that the ultrasound would move elsewhere and we would use the building as our Ebola Isolation Area. 

We have identified two rooms: one for the isolation area with two beds for now and one for storage of cleaning supplies and personal protective equipment. We actually had to involve the police, security and a carpenter to break one of the locks to get access to one of the rooms. We got as far as emptying out and cleaning one room today and hopefully the preparation of the rooms will continue in the morning. 

Ebola: some facts to put people at ease, a little...

Here are some facts from the US Embassy in Liberia. My guess is there is a lot of panic in both Guinea and Liberia right now. I think these facts are helpful in helping people realize that yes, Ebola can be dangerous and can lead to many deaths, but that there are also things we can do to keep the virus from spreading. And, we do not need to be fearful that everyone we meet in the streets could be a potential threat. The disease really only is contagious once someone is acutely ill.

Monrovia | April 04, 2014

• The suspected reservoirs for Ebola are fruit bats.
• Transmission to humans is thought to originate from infected bats or primates that have become infected by bats.
• Undercooked infected bat and primate (bush) meat transmits the virus to humans.
• Human to human transmission is only achieved by physical contact with a person who is acutely and gravely ill from the Ebola virus or their body fluids.
• Transmission among humans is almost exclusively among caregiver family members or health care workers tending to the very ill.
• The virus is easily killed by contact with soap, bleach, sunlight, or drying.  A washing machine will kill the virus in clothing saturated with infected body fluids.
• A person can incubate the virus without symptoms for 2-21 days, the average being five to eight days before becoming ill.  THEY ARE NOT CONTAGIOUS until they are acutely ill.
• Only when ill, does the viral load express itself first in the blood and then in other bodily fluids (to include vomit, feces, urine, breast milk, semen and sweat).
• If you are walking around you are not infectious to others.
• There are documented cases from Kikwit, Democratic Republic of Congo of an Ebola outbreak in a village that had the custom of children never touching an ill adult.  Children living for days in small one room huts with parents who died from Ebola did not become infected.
• You cannot contract Ebola by handling money, buying local bread or swimming in a pool.
• At this time, there is no medical reason to stop flights, close borders, restrict travel or close embassies, businesses or schools.
• As always practice good hand washing techniques.  You will not contract Ebola if you do not touch a dying person.

Message for U.S. Citizens: Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever in Guinea (April 04, 2014)

Ebola: the facts so far...

It is public news that Ebola has reached West Africa for the first time in history. Both Guinea and Liberia have confirmed cases. Sierra Leone has no confirmed cases. Some facts that might be of interest especially related to Sierra Leone are as follows:

• 15 March: Sierra Leone Ministry was alerted by Guinean health authorities about an unknown outbreak leading to deaths.
• 19 March: WHO confirmed cases in Guinea were hemorrhagic fever.
• 22 March: WHO confirmed cases in Guinea were Ebola - Zaire strain.
• The National Ebola Task Force in Sierra Leone was engaged and four groups meet regularly.
• There has been increased surveillance, especially near the border.
• There are no confirmed cases in Sierra Leone as of the 5th of April.
• There were two Sierra Leoneans in one family that died in Guinea and were probably cases of Ebola and their bodies were repatriated to Sierra Leone (1 1/2 miles across the border). The contacts of said Sierra Leonean family have been traced and tested throughout the incubation period (21 days) and are all negative. 
• Sierra Leone may be better prepared due to our ongoing surveillance for Lassa Fever (a different hemorrhagic fever endemic in Sierra Leone) and due to our state of the art Lassa Fever unit in Kenema who can perform Ebola testing.
• Each district has designated surveillance officers that can be called upon at any time.
• Isolation areas will be/are set up in health facilities as a precautionary measure.
• In the current case definition the key point is travel history to Guinea or Liberia or contact with someone from their with history of febrile illness.
• During the 2-21 day incubation period a person is NOT infectious (contagious). It is when someone starts having symptoms that transmission of the virus starts, usually when they are very ill and need support in coming to the hospital. Transmission of disease is highest in very late stage of disease (hemorrhagic state) and when dealing with a corpse.

(sources: Ministry of Health and Sanitation, WHO)