Rita Melifonwu, Ashoka Fellow, Founder and Chief Executive of WSO member Stroke Action Nigeria shares her experience of the response to COVID 19 in Nigeria.
Rita Melifonwu, a Senior Nurse, is a member of the Onitsha COVID 19 Response Steering Committee, and acting as the Facilitator for the Field Operations Working Group. According to the World Health Organisation as of 15.4.2020 there are 343 confirmed cases of COVID 19 in Nigeria https://www.afro.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus-covid-19
The COVID 19 Response Steering Committee in Onitsha, a city of quarter of a million people in Anambra State, is lobbying the government to ensure that health workers in the COVID 19 Isolation Centres get equitable allocation of personal protective equipment (PPE) and the public get accurate and timely information updates and access to humanitarian support for the most in need.
The Steering Committee is working in collaboration with the Onitsha COVID 19 Response Program set up by the Palace and chaired by HRH Alfred Nnaemeka Achebe, Obi of Onitsha.
The Steering Committee is itself adhering to safety measures by holding online meetings and ensuring face masks are worn and physical distancing takes place during outreach activities.
As Chief Executive of the SSO Stroke Action Nigeria, Rita is also ensuring support to stroke survivors is maintained as far as is possible. Stroke Action is sharing guidance on befriending using the telephone or social media for the elderly, stroke survivors and people with disabilities, and raising awareness of the importance of promoting well being as people are self isolating.
While it is recognised that the immediate priority is to contain the health and human crisis, Rita is discussing with other stakeholders the need to start thinking about recovery plans, particularly for condition specific organisations such as Stroke Action Nigeria, and mitigating the impact of job losses, reduced funding for NGOs, and reduced focus on already under resourced stroke services. 'It's crucial to increase our connection with all stroke and NCD stakeholders in our response to COVID 19, within Nigeria and with the global stroke network, both now and for the time when we are managing recovery plans' says Rita.
As an Ashoka-Boehringer Ingleham (BI) Making More Health Fellow for Nigeria, Rita has just received a COVID 19 Response Emergency Relief grant of $8,000 from BI to contribute towards Stroke Action Nigeria's Rapid Response Stroke Team Service to alleviate the impacts of COVID 19 on both stroke survivors, Stroke Action Nigeria and the communities that it serves across five States in Nigeria.
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