NGO laments spate of children affected with Pneumonia

The Country Director of Save the Children International, Deirdre Keogh, has expressed concern over the spate of children affected with Pneumonia that could be saved is potentially far higher.

In a press statement issued Wednesday in Abuja, Keogh stated that the modelling did not take account of factors like availability of medical oxygen, or action to reduce levels of air pollution as a major risk factor for pneumonia.

According to the statement, new analysis has found that efforts to fight pneumonia could avert over 2 million child deaths from pneumonia and other major diseases in Nigeria. 

He said the modelling by Johns Hopkins University is being released today as nine leading health and children’s agencies host the world’s first global conference on childhood pneumonia in Barcelona.

“Interventions like improving nutrition, increasing vaccine coverage or boosting breastfeeding rates – key measures that reduce the risk of children dying from pneumonia – would also stop thousands of child deaths from diseases like diarrhoea (580,000), meningitis (68,000), measles (55,000) and malaria (4,000).

“By 2030, that effect would be so large that pneumonia interventions alone would avert over 2 million predicted under-five child deaths in Nigeria from all causes combined, researchers said.

“Pneumonia is caused by bacteria, viruses or fungi, and leaves children fighting for breath as their lungs fill with pus and fluid.

“The disease is the leading killer of children in Nigeria, causing 19 percent of under-five deaths,” the release said. 

Also, UNICEF Nigeria’s Country Representative, Peter Hawkins,

said “We have a responsibility to do all we can to avert these deaths by pneumonia – deaths that are nearly all preventable. 

“It will take concerted action by all players. The announcement by the Nigerian government of the world’s first-ever pneumonia control strategy – coupled with the focus globally on combatting pneumonia – is a huge step forward. 

“We now need to follow this with concrete action on the ground to address the causes and drivers of childhood pneumonia deaths in this country,” he said .

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