The Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Cope Coast, Professor Johnson Nyarko Boampong has urged that Ghana attach all seriousness to its fight against malaria as it did with the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to him, if Ghana is able to intensify efforts in the fight against malaria, the country will the able to totally defeat this “ruling champion.”
“During the COVID-19, in Ghana everybody was serious. We were asked to put on nose mask and we are still putting on the nose masks but when we ask you to sleep in the bed nets you don’t want to sleep in the bed nets… I think the same seriousness that we attached to the treatment of, the prevention or the spread of the covid-19, I think we should adopt the same strategy to make sure that we prevent transmission of the parasite,” Prof. Nyarko Boampong said in his inaugural lecture held at the School of Medical Sciences auditorium Friday, May 20, 2022.
The lecture was on the topic, “Malaria treatment failures: What can we do?”
It is the first in the series of inaugural lectures being organized by the University of Cape Coast as part of activities to mark its 60th Anniversary celebration.
The inaugural lecture was graced by the Vice Chancellor’s family, former Vice Chancellors of the University, the University’s Governing Council, students, traditional leaders, Reverend Ministers, banks, among other personalities.
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Suggesting ways to achieve zero malaria in Ghana, Professor Nyarko Boampong indicated that prompt diagnosis must be a priority when one is ill.
According to him, prompt diagnosis can help detect malaria on time and this will aid in its early treatment so that it does not become complicated where if not treated early can kill the individual infected with the disease.
He however, indicated that the best method to prevent and control the malaria vector is vaccination.
“The best method would have been vaccination. COVID came and we soon got vaccine for it but for malaria it has been with us for a long time but we are not getting the vaccine for it,” Professor Boampong said.
He explained that the reason Ghana is finding it difficult to get vaccines for malaria is because the malaria parasite has a huge number of proteins which continues to change.
But while commending Ghana in its efforts to get vaccine to help fight against Malaria, Prof Boampong said getting “very effective vaccines” for the citizenry can help protect them from the life threatening disease.
Meanwhile, he stated that despite efforts put in the treatment of the disease factors including failure to take required doses of malaria drugs and socio-economic factors, such as not feeding well because of poverty among others can lead to malaria treatment failures.
According to him, because he believes something needs to be done about the malaria treatment failures and the disease itself which he describes as a “champion,” before he assumed office as the VC his focus was training more people so that together they can fight the disease.
The inaugural lecture
Prof. Obeng Mireku who chaired the event and introduced Professor Johnson Nyarko Boampong, stressed the importance of inaugural lectures in the University of Cape Coast saying “inaugural lectures form a key part of the traditions of the University of Cape Coast and enable the University’s newly promoted professors to showcase to the University wide audience their research or perspectives on issues of interest to them.”
He noted that the inaugural lecture series provides a platform to newly promoted professors to contribute to the academic life of the University.
He added that although Professor Johnson Nyarko Boampong was promoted to the rank of professor in 2016, the inaugural lecture offered the VC the opportunity to celebrate the important personal milestone with a broad audience.
As part of the inaugural lecture, Professor Nyarko Boampong was disrobed, robed and enrolled into the College of Professors.
SOURCE: ROSEMOND ASMAH/ATLFMNEWS
