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WHO and partners scale up the response to the Ebola outbreak

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CONAKRY – The efforts to control the outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in Guinean capital Conakry are being intensified. More resources were mobilised and WHO and partners are streamlining their coordination of different components of the response.

To strengthen contact tracing in Conakry, the World Health Organization (WHO) organized an intensive training today for a first group of 70 trainees. They will go into the communities to follow up on specific persons who had close contacts with patients with a confirmed Ebola infection.

Training for health workers on infection control has started yesterday in different departments of the Donka national teaching hospital and will also take place in other health facilities in coming days.

Simultaneously, WHO is setting up an operation centre for alert and response within the Guinean Ministry of Health (MoH) in order to centralize the coordination of all activities linked to detection, search, transportation, hospitalisation and burial of suspect cases.

WHO clinicians continue to support Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) and MoH in providing clinical management at Donka isolation ward.

According to the latest figures, 157 people, including 101 deaths, have been infected with the Ebola Virus Disease in Guinea. As of today, sixty-six cases have been confirmed by laboratory analysis.

Spread across 6 districts of the country including Conakry, this Ebola outbreak represents a particular challenge that requires the mobilization of different resources from national and international partners to put in place the necessary response measures.

WHO has more than 50 people on the ground supporting the Ministry of Health and other partners to provide clinical management of patients, contact tracing, disease surveillance, laboratory work, logistics, as well as information-sharing and social mobilization and communication.

New outbreak management software developed by the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is presently being updated with data from the field, and will soon be used as the primary database tool by all partners. The CDC software package Epi-Info aggregates various types of outbreak data into a single database that produces statistical and visual reports on the outbreak.

Ebola can have a case fatality rate of up to 90%, and is a severe acute viral illness. It is characterized by sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache, nausea and sore throat. This can be followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, impaired kidney and liver function, and in some cases, both internal and external bleeding.

No vaccine is available, nor is there any specific treatment. Severely ill patients require intensive supportive care. Patients are frequently dehydrated and require oral rehydration with solutions containing electrolytes, or intravenous fluids. 8 patients in Guinea have so far recovered.

Raising awareness of the risk factors for infection and the protective measures that should be taken is the only way to stop transmission and subsequent deaths.

Close unprotected physical contact with Ebola patients should be avoided and those who have died from the disease should be promptly and safely buried.

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Painkillers Damaged My Kidney, Says Ufoma McDermott[VIDEO]

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Nollywood actress, Ufoma McDermott has shared how her long-term painkiller use led to kidney disease.

In a recent interview with media personality Chude Jideonwo, she opened up about her 12-year struggle with the illness and urged the public to prioritize their health.

While revealing that her condition was a side effect of long-term painkiller abuse, McDermott said; “I really wish everyone would understand the importance of health. My brother was diagnosed late on stage 4 of kidney disease and he goes straight into dialysis and has complications.

“I was diagnosed earlier, so I have lived on medication for almost 12 years now. When my brother I ran to my cardiologist. My parents were scared, thinking if this is genetic? We had to trace the kidney disease and we learned it was from drug abuse.

“I grew up with migraines, headaches and eyeaches, and I never wore my glasses because they made me look like a geek. I’d take painkillers for my migraine. I took strong painkillers and not the ordinary painkillers because I wanted the pain to go away.”

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Music Icon Quincy Jones Passes Away At 91

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Quincy Jones, the legendary music producer, composer, and cultural icon whose career spanned over seven decades, has passed away at the age of 91.

Jones died peacefully on Sunday night at his Bel Air home, surrounded by family, according to his publicist, Arnold Robinson.

“Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing,” his family said in a statement. “And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived and know there will never be another like him.”

Renowned for his unmatched versatility, Jones collaborated with some of the greatest musical talents of the 20th and 21st centuries, including Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, and Will Smith. He played an integral role in producing Jackson’s groundbreaking albums Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad, which catapulted the pop star to global superstardom and earned Jones worldwide acclaim.

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Born in Chicago in 1933, Jones’ journey into music began early. His childhood introduction came from a neighbor’s piano playing and his mother’s singing. After moving to Washington state following his parents’ divorce, he honed his skills in his high school band and began playing with a young Ray Charles in Seattle’s vibrant club scene.

Jones’ career took off in New York, where he played trumpet in Elvis Presley’s early TV performances and worked with bebop legends like Charlie Parker and Miles Davis. By 1958, he was working with Frank Sinatra, arranging for the singer’s band at the request of Princess Grace Kelly. Their partnership flourished, spanning several projects including Sinatra’s final album LA Is My Lady in 1984.

Throughout the 1960s and 70s, Jones’ talents extended into film and television scores, composing music for films such as The Italian Job, In the Heat of the Night, and the acclaimed The Color Purple, for which he earned three Oscar nominations. He also scored hit TV shows including The Bill Cosby Show and Roots.

In 1985, Jones produced and co-conducted the charity anthem “We Are the World” alongside Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, raising millions for Ethiopian famine relief. Despite personal and professional challenges—including surviving a near-fatal brain aneurysm in 1974—Jones’s career continued to thrive.

Jones’ influence wasn’t limited to music. In 1990, he founded Quincy Jones Entertainment, the company behind the popular sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, which launched the career of Will Smith. His media ventures also included the creation of Qwest TV, an on-demand music streaming service, and the magazine Vibe, which celebrated Black music and culture.

Over his career, Jones earned 80 Grammy nominations, winning 28—making him one of the most decorated artists in the award’s history. Tributes poured in following news of his death. Actor Michael Caine, who shared Jones’ birthdate, called him “a wonderful and unique human being.” Music artists such as LL Cool J expressed gratitude, saying, “You were a father and example at a time when I truly needed one. Music would not be music without you.”

Jones is survived by his seven children, leaving behind an indelible legacy that will resonate through generations to come. His life’s work transformed music, television, and culture, proving that there truly was no limit to what Quincy Jones could accomplish.

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Prayers Won’t Build Roads, Fund Children’s Education – Jesse Jagz To Nigerians

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Singer and rapper Jesse Jagz has called on Nigerians to rethink their approach to religion.

Jagz suggested that African traditional religious gods have become ineffective, attributing this to the excessive alcohol given to them during rituals, which, according to him, has made them obese, diabetic, and unable to aid their worshipers.

Speaking on the ‘Big Talk’ podcast, the rapper also criticized followers of foreign religions for relying solely on prayer and expecting miracles without putting in the necessary effort. He stressed that prayers alone cannot provide essential social services or infrastructure.

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“When you go to a shrine and you see the priest pouring gin on the gods, Google how much a bottle of gin was in slavery. 40 slaves.

“Our gods are drunk on alcohol and meat. They are obese and diabetic.

“They can’t help us do anything. Prayers do not build roads or buy books for children. We have forgotten humanity,” he said.

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