Strengthening Bauchi State College of Nursing and Midwifery by updating its training curricula, procedure manuals and student handbooks

Many of Nigeria’s Nursing and Midwifery schools and colleges encounter challenges that include outdated training curricula, which can lead, in some cases, to loss of accreditation. In Bauchi state, a state College of Nursing and Midwifery was formally established in 2013. The Population Council engaged a curriculum expert who had worked with the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (which stipulates minimum standards of compliance for accreditation) to assess the school’s training documents, including its training curriculum, procedure manual, and student handbook. The school is expected to secure full accreditation in 2019. The Population Council also supported the strengthening of the curriculum review committee, which now meets regularly to discuss both tutor and student recommendations on use of the new materials

Collaboration with the University of Calabar for human resources for health management training for Bauchi and Cross River states

A pool of knowledgeable staff is required within middle and senior management for long-term human resources for health (HRH) planning and effective management at all levels of the health system—federal, state, and local. This brief reports on the training by the Population Council, in partnership with the World Health Organization in Nigeria, of 105 key personnel on HRH planning, management, policy dialogue, advocacy, and resourcing for the HRH project “Enhancing the Ability of Frontline Health Workers to Improve Health in Nigeria.” Critical HRH-related capacities were built among key Nigerian health system personnel and managers, most significantly in the states of Bauchi and Cross River and within their local government areas. These efforts should facilitate better long-term HRH planning and management in these areas, hopefully leading to improved health outcomes in these states. In addition, the institutional strengthening of a national center for HRH Training and Education, through the sustainability efforts of the HRH project, will continue to build the capacities of healthcare managers and workers throughout Nigeria

Population Council\u27s support for Nigeria\u27s third national Human Resources for Health conference and efforts to institutionalize HRH conferences in Nigeria

This project brief describes the Population Council\u27s partnership efforts with public health stakeholders in Nigeria to plan and host a third national conference for provision of necessary and relevant information on critical health issues to health staff and stakeholders throughout Nigeria

Strengthening in-service training and continuing education (IST/CE) for frontline health workers for Bauchi and Cross River states

This brief details Council efforts to develop effective, and costed, in-service training and continuing education modules for frontline health workers in Bauchi and Cross River states in Nigeria. This project was funded by WHO to aid the training and development of Nigeria\u27s public health worker sector

Strengthening Cross River state schools of nursing and midwifery by updating their training curricula, procedure manuals and student handbooks

Many of Nigeria’s Nursing and Midwifery schools and colleges encounter challenges that include outdated training curricula, which can lead, in some cases, to loss of accreditation. In Cross River state, in 2014 only one health training institution was accredited—provisionally. Five other institutions had lost their accreditations from the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) which stipulates minimum standards of compliance for accreditation. An assessment team led by the Director of Nursing of Calabar’s Ministry of Health visited the Cross River schools to determine the best ways of addressing the gaps in the accreditation team’s report. Through the HRH project efforts led by the Population Council, all of Cross River’s schools of Nursing and Midwifery are now accredited by NMCN

Assessment of in-service training and continuing education (IST/CE) for frontline health workers in Bauchi and Cross River states, Nigeria

Training contributes tremendously to the development and sustenance of health workers’ competencies for quality healthcare services. Although Nigeria has a higher stock of human resources for health compared to other African countries, the World Health Organization argues that its distribution is highly skewed toward urban areas. Building and maintaining staff capacities requires continuing professional development through in-service training (IST) and continuing education (CE). This study assesses current IST and CE for health workers in Bauchi and Cross River states to provide evidence to inform policy and planning and improve implementation of capacity-building for health workers in Nigeria

An assessment of human resources for health hiring, deployment and retention, procedures and practices in Cross river and Bauchi states, Nigeria

Primary health care (PHC) is the first contact in a healthcare system and, at its core, includes access to basic interventions that address health needs at the community level. These basic interventions are provided by key frontline health workers—nurses, midwives, and community health extension workers—critical for facilitating immediate access to maternal, newborn, and child health services at PHC facilities. Despite the critical roles of these healthworker cadres, their distribution is uneven and skewed—geographic and within levels of care and governments, in addition to poor distribution of skills—compounded by high attrition due to poor human resources for health (HRH) management and development. The aim of this study is to examine the HRH hiring, deployment, and retention procedures and practices in Cross River and Bauchi states in Nigeria, to generate evidence to support the development of improved and gender-sensitive hiring and deployment guidelines. The study also provides recommendations for improved HRH planning and management for better service delivery

Gum exudates of Acacia senegal linn is an alternative binding agent in Drosophila melanogaster culture for laboratory maintenance of stocks

The gum exudates of Acacia senegal Linn was utilized as a single agent or in combination with agar-agar in the formulation of Drosophila diet. Eight (8) corn-meal diets were formulated in two sets consisting of 15 – 40 % (w/w) A. senegal as a single binding agent or a mixture of A. senegal in the ratios of 1:5, 1:2, 1:1 and 2:1 to agar-agar per 100 g corn-meal diet. Biochemical markers of toxicity were analyzed spectrophotometrically. Standard methods of AOAC were employed to determine the physicochemical and proximate compositions of the formulated corn-meal diets. The results from this study showed high level of safety of the gum on adult Drosophila melanogaster (Harwich strain) of both sexes and of the same lineage. LC50 > 100 mg/g with insignificant mortality in all groups at varying concentration (1 – 100 mg/g) of the gum exudate was observed after 7 days of treatment. Significant increases in eclosion in the A. senegal – exposed flies at concentrations of 2, 4 and 5 mg/g diet was also observed after the treatment. A normal trend in locomotor activity was observed in all groups when flies were subjected to negative geotaxic assay, however, at concentrations of 50 mg/g there was an impairment in locomotion. The formulated A. Senegal containing diets have shown varying differences in physicochemical properties, even though no significant changes in the biochemical parameters including SOD1, Catalase and GST in all groups were seen. The collective findings of the present study revealed that the gum exudates of A. senegal L. may be a cost-effective alternative of agar-agar in corn-meal diet for laboratory maintenance of Drosophila melanogaster stocks

Venetoclax and Daratumumab combination treatment demonstrates pre-clinical efficacy in mouse models of Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains an incurable malignancy despite recent advances in treatment. Recently a number of new therapies have emerged for the treatment of AML which target BCL-2 or the membrane receptor CD38. Here, we show that treatment with Venetoclax and Daratumumab combination resulted in a slower tumor progression and a reduced leukemia growth both in vitro and in vivo. These data provide evidence for clinical evaluation of Venetoclax and Daratumumab combination in the treatment of AML