I got circumcised to give my partner sexual pleasure

 

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

 

Health experts say Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision can reduce contraction of HIV by 60 percent. But despite the benefits, most men still shy away from the cut citing various reasons, among them pain during and after the operation. However, the belief that circumcision reduces sensitivity during sex, is responsible for much of the resistance.

So a challenge came through from one of my readers asking me to find a man who would be willing to speak candidly about circumcision. It took me a while to find someone who was ready to speak on the issue without 'hiding' under the name of anonymous. But one person was willing to share his story after reading my notice.

Here is my short interview with Innocent Matyola, aged 41, who got circumcised in 2009.

Pokeyourmind: What or who motivated you to undergo circumcision

Innocent Matyola

Innocent: It is something i had thought about for a long time. i decided get circumcised  firstly 
for personal hygiene, as well as giving my wife pleasurable love making.

Pokeyourmind : Pleasurable love making...does circumcision guarantee that, how?

 

Innocent : It does. It gives you endurance and confidence.  You do not get to experience premature ejaculation.

Pokeyourmind: Okay, but what about talk that it reduces sensitivity. Any truth in that statement?

Innocent : To some extent yes. But that also has a benefit in that reduced sensitivity guarantees your partner to have the much required orgasm. Too much sensitivity has always led to premature ejaculation.

Pokeyourmind : So, low sensitivity does not worry you?
 

Innocent : It always makes me feel I should as well work to satisfy my wife. As you may know and I should attest to the fact that men have always had to ejaculate even when their women counterparts were left unsatisfied. So it doesn't bother me at all.

Pokeyourmind : Okay. I guess she appreciates the sacrifice. Now tell me, did you have any fears or concerns prior to the operation?

 

Innocent : As a matter of fact I almost all the time wished I should have gotten circumcised. I had a habit of pulling my foreskin most of the time so I appreciated the idea before the operation. So for me it was something i looked forward to. Besides its a small operation which healed in two weeks but a few days after i was able to get round and do my normal errands.

Pokeyourmind : You hail from the Southern part of Zambia where circumcision is not commonly practiced. Do you openly talk about it and do you encourage men from your area to get circumcised?

 

Innocent : I openly talk about being circumcised and why i did it and the benefits and am proud to say, that a number of people i have shared my story with have gone ahead to get circumcised despite coming from Southern Province where this is not a common practice as is the trend i areas like North-Western Province.

Pokeyourmind : Do you have sons and if so are they circumcised?

Innocent : I do have sons  but they are yet to get circumcised but i intend to have them circumcised. PYM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DRW: Judicial System insensitive to mentally disabled persons

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

The Disability Rights Watch (DRW) has called on government to ensure that persons with mental disabilities are adequately represented in the courts to avoid them being detained unnecessarily.

This comes in the wake of five persons with mental disabilities who were released from Chainama East Prison recently.

 

DRW president Wamundila Waliuya appealed to the Legal Resource Chambers (LRC) to take up more cases for persons with mental disabilities who have been declared unfit to undergo trial.

DWR President Wamundila Waliuya

"Many need treatment and have been detained for many years in our prisons. The conditions under which they are detained are not pleasant at all. Today, many more are still in prison without a fair trial, and there is no one to stand for the protection of their rights when found guilty after a fair trial," he said.

 

The Persons with Disabilities Act of 2012 states that the judicature shall take necessary measures to ensure that persons with disabilities have equal and effective protection and equal benefits of the law without discrimination. This includes persons with mental disabilities.

It further states that where a person with disability is a party in any legal proceedings, the adjudicating body shall take into account the condition of the person with disability and provide procedural and other appropriate facilities to enable that person access justice and participate effectively in the proceedings.

The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities indicates that “States Parties shall ensure that persons with disabilities, on an equal basis with others: enjoy the right to liberty and security of persons; are not deprived of their liberty unlawfully or arbitrarily, and that any deprivation of liberty is in conformity with the law, and that the existence of a disability shall in no case justify a deprivation of liberty”.

Mr Waliuya added that “the continuous detention of persons with mental disabilities in prisons for long periods is in contradiction with international human rights law. An argument may be raised here that such people may be a danger to the community. This is a justifiable argument. It must however be realised that most of the people who commit crimes while in a state of mental crisis are usually triggered by social factors."

He said it was the states’ and the citizens’ responsibility to ensure that factors that trigger mental crisis in persons with mental disabilities were controlled.

 

"Steps should be taken to progressively develop community support services that will act as a measure to reduce mental disabilities. Such services include community based mental health services and community based rehabilitation. Families and communities should be educated on issues related to mental disability. "

However, Mr Waliuya congratulated the High Court for its landmark decision to declare the long detention of five mentally disabled persons illegal.

"DRW congratulates the LRC for representing the petitioners with mental disabilities. In our view, this is a landmark judgment which will build up the portfolio of judgments which promote and protect the rights of persons with disabilities. The judgment has established precedence in Zambia’s jurisprudence."

But he added, "in this case, the courts should now shape themselves to provide reasonable accommodation for persons with mental disabilities rather than detaining them for many years as they wait for psychiatry assessment." PYM

 

UN global Message on Ebola Virus Disease

Message from the UN Medical Services Division: Information on Ebola Virus Disease

The UN Medical Services Division (MSD) has been monitoring closely the recent outbreak of Ebola virus diseases (EVD) in West Africa and is supporting the preparedness and response efforts of our UN health facilities in the affected locations.

Treatment options within the affected countries for anyone who may contract EVD are likely to be limited, and medical evacuation capacities may be significantly disrupted.

Therefore, it is recommended that travel on official business to the countries of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea be restricted to essential travel only and that each travel request be reviewed on its mission criticality.

For the most updated information and list of countries affected in this recent outbreak, please consult the World Health Organisation website at http://www.who.int/csr/don/archive/disease/ebola/en/

The following are some important points about the transmission of EVD and precautions that should be taken to protect yourself and your family. Individuals become infected when they have direct physical contact with the blood or body fluids of infected person or animal, or contact with contaminated objects.

 

Persons who come into direct contact with the body fluids of an infected person at risk. To date, transmission among humans has been mainly due to caregiver family members or health care workers tending to the very ill or preparing the body for burial.

 

A person can incubate the virus symptoms for 2-21 days, the average being 5 to 8 days becoming ill. THE PERSON IS NOT CONTAGIOUS until they are acutely ill.

 

The virus is easily killed by contact with soap, bleach, sunlight, or drying. A washing machine will kill the virus in clothing saturated with infected blood or body fluids.

 

As always, practice good hygiene and hand washing techniques at all times. Symptoms of EVD include fever, weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat. This is followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, rash, and in some cases, bleeding.

 

If you have recently visited an area where Ebola has been reported and feel sick with any of the above symptoms, seek immediate medical attention.

 

There is no licensed vaccine or specific treatment for EVD. PYM

Zambian health minister outlines plans for Ebola

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

 

Zambia’s government has heightened it’s alert on Ebola which is spreading fast in West Africa’s, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra-Leone and Nigeria. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared Ebola, a virus transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission, a "Public Health Emergency of International Proportions".

According to a Health Advisory issued by  Minister of Health, Dr Joseph Kasonde, until further notice, the country is to ensure the following measures;

1. All Zambians travelling from the Ebola affected areas will be thoroughly screened and quarantined if the risk is eminent upon return until further notice.

2. All delegates from any of the countries affected by Ebola Virus disease are restricted from entering Zambia until further notice.

3. All International events that may involve delegates from the affected countries are postponed, cancelled or such delegates excluded. The Ministry is advising against holding of all international events that lead to mass gatherings until

further notice. This is because these mass gatherings escalates the spread of the

disease and makes control difficult.

4. Zambians and residents intending to travel to the Ebola affected countries on duty or business are restricted to undertake such travels.

For further information or report any suspected cases, contact any of the following numbers:

+26096684062, +26097742161, +26096277859, +260955411988 or email : info@moh .gov. zm  PYM

Food Secure, but no nutritional security!

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

The Zambia Civil Society Scaling-Up Nutrition (CSO-SUN) has called on government to reform existing agricultural plans to increase their impact on nutrition by encouraging diversity in food production, aimed at improving the nutritional outcome of the population through maximizing the positive impact of food and agricultural systems on nutrition.

CSO-SUN country coordinator, William Chilufya said the high levels of malnutrition in Zambia create an urgent call to ensure that investment in agriculture becomes a core part of the solution and preventive strategy by ensuring food is affordable and diverse.

He said that although Zambia has over the past years achieved food security with its staple cereal, achieving food and nutrition security as recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and other international agencies, still remains a challenge to the government.

“A number of factors have resulted in a serious deterioration of food and nutritional security in recent years. In rural areas food insecurity is due to low productivity, limited access to agricultural services and resources, and over-emphasized production of hybrid maize at the expense of traditional crops. The excessive focus on incentives to produce Maize dissuades farmers from diversifying their cropping patterns. The lack of investment in the promotion of other sectors other than maize has resulted in limited crop diversification,” added Chilufya.   

Among other things, the Zambian government has committed itself to reducing chronic undernutrition by 50 percent in the next 10 years, resolve the human resource and financial gaps in the 5 key line Ministries which includes Agriculture and Livestock. 

Further, government will aim to increase nutrition budget lines by at least 20 percent annually for the next 10 years and also progressively encourage the involvement of the private sector to enable access to affordable and appropriate nutritious foods to mothers, children and other vulnerable groups.

“When we think of food production, ecosystem, health and human wellbeing, one crucial element is often not mentioned: nutrition. Nutrition is everyone’s business and no one’s responsibility, as the saying goes. But we know that one of the world’s greatest challenges is to secure adequate food that is healthy, safe and of high quality for all, and to do so in an environmentally sustainable manner,” said Chilufya.

Malnutrition is one of the greatest challenges facing Zambia today. Nearly one in every two children is stunted or small for their age. The country has one of the highest rates of stunting in children under five years old in the world. At 45.8 percent, higher than the 42 percent average rate for Africa, Zambia’s rate of child stunting remains higher than the vast majority of its neighbouring countries. PYM

EMOC training; a must for health practioners

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

 

Midwives play a pivotal role in reducing maternal and child deaths. Unfortunately, inadequate numbers of these essential health workers remains a challenge in most health institutions around the country especially those in rural areas.

However, some health centres like the Kalabo District Hospital located 70 kilometers from Mongu in Western Province are one of the few institutions lucky enough to have midwives to help with deliveries.





Since graduating in 2012, 27-year-old Anifield Siandabile has delivered more than 200 women, helping fill the gap of midwives at the hospital.

 

Anifield Siandabile

In addition to training in nursing, in 2012, Anifield attended a three week course offered by UNFPA in Emergency Obstetrics and Neonatal Care (EMOC), a training he says has tremendously improved his trade and helped save the lives of pregnant women and their babies.

The training covers the child, mother and all the complications a woman may face when she is pregnant, during labour and six weeks after delivery, a time when complications are most common.

"On an individual level, compared to the knowledge I had before and after the training, I am on another level. It has helped me handle a lot of complicated cases that I would otherwise wait for the doctor to attend to, putting the life of the woman and her child in danger in situations when the doctor was unavailable. For example, in cases of prolonged labour, I am able to do various procedures without calling for a doctor,” explains Anifield.

Almost two years down the line, Anifield recommends that the training should not only be restricted to midwives but be extended to all nurses and health care providers as they too encounter emergency situations involving pregnant women.

“If the EMOC training is extended, I believe the country will see a further decrease in women dying from child birth because all health workers will be equipped and procedures to stop complications such as bleeding will easily be done.”

He said due to various interventions such as the introduction of a Health Adversity Committee, which involves traditional leaders in issues pertaining to maternal health and the presence of an ambulance donated by UNFPA, Kalabo district hospital had recorded an increase in women delivering at the institution.
 

According to the 2013 Kalabo District Medical Office Report on Communication for Development (C4D), although Kalabo district faces a challenge of low coverage’s when it comes to some Maternal and Child Health Indicators, institutional deliveries increased from 52 percent in 2012 to 64 percent in 2013.

"With the health adversity team in place, the message is getting to women that when they fall sick, they should rush to the rural health centre and if the nurse available is unable to handle to the problem, the hospital then sends an ambulance is sent to bring the patient to the hospital. But I still emphasise that all health workers be trained in EMOC because sometimes the hospital has challenges with fuel, “said Anifield. PYM

Can beads enhance libido?

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

Sexuality or lovemaking in humans is not just a primitive biological urge or instinct as in animals. It has developed to a much higher level. Many aids are used to enhance lovemaking such as using bikinis, powders, perfume and the like.

In traditional society, the wearing of beads around the waist by women was said to enhance libido. Is this true or just an old-wives tale?

"Fired nurses migrate"

 

 

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

 

Zambia : More than 500 EXPERIENCED nurses fired and just like that, we have moved on. They pleaded for forgiveness and our leaders ignored.

Well it seems, Zambia's firing of nurses is a gain to neighbouring countries as a huge exodus is underway. Now they are migrating to neighbouring countries in large numbers and with their experience it won't be long before they all leave. And in the meantime our health institutions are battling with inexperienced staff. We all know the big guns don't go to public hospitals so it was up to ordinary Zambians to demand that the nurses be reinstated and we didn't.

 

At the time, sentiments were that they deserved it. If you have been to the hospital lately especially those who have been hospitalised or have had a relative in hospital, you now know that we are in a crisis. Who is paying now? PYM

HPV vaccine, still your choice!

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

Thought about keeping this to myself but on second thought decided i need to make this very CLEAR. My posts on the HPV Vaccine  on my Facebook Page  are not meant to FORCE any of you to have your children vaccinated. I got a call from one angry parent who accused me of being USED to advocate for a vaccine whose efficacy is yet to be proven. She said i should be ready to take responsibility when the side-effects of the vaccine begin to show on the vaccinated children.

On the page, we have had several debates on the HPV vaccine with parents in support and those against, and i have shared information gathered from experts and in some cases added names of some of the experts spear heading this campaign. Now if you as a parent feel the vaccine is not for your child, then, by all means, do not allow her to be vaccinated. It is your right! But what i will continue to do is share whatever information i come across to allow parents make informed decisions.


Her last question to me was, 'If you had a child, would you allow her to get the vaccine?' My answer was YES. And i came to this conclusion after much research 'online and interviews with Cancer experts and parents in and outside Zambia who have had their children vaccinated.'

Dr Mulindi Mwanahamuntu chats with girls at the HPV vaccine Launch

In addition, i personally know people who had cervical cancer and the damage the disease can use. So, let me make this clear again, i am not forcing and neither is the government forcing parents to get their children vaccinated. That final decision is yours as a PARENT. It was not a nice call but i understand, even in my old age, my 'guardian' still worries about me, and here we are talking about the lives of little girls.  Stay blessed all and stay healthy. PYM

Your facts on blood donation

June 14 is WORLD BLOOD DONOR DAY. Here is what you need to know;

1. It takes about 30 minutes to complete the blood donation process.

2. Persons in good health can donate blood every 12 weeks (3 weeks) without posing any risks to their lives.

3. To be a blood donor , you should be between 16 and 65 years old and weight at least 45kg.

4. Prospective blood donors first have to pass a brief medical examination before they can be allowed to donate. Pre-donation counseling is given to every prospective donor to inform them about the tests to be done on their blood and the need to discuss test results with ZNBTS donor counselor.

 

5. Blood donation could either be arranged through an appointment at a place of work, school or by going to any Provincial Blood Transfusion Centre.

6. The tools used for blood collection are sterile and disposable and each kit is used only once, for one donor and thereafter disposed off safely. therefore giving blood does not put a donor at risk of getting any infection such as HIV, Hepatitis or syphylis.

-Information courtesy of the Zambia National Blood Transfusion Service

Become a blood donor

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

I was coming from the Zambia National Blood Transfusion Services (ZNBTS) located at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) yesterday when the bus i was on got involved in an accident. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries recorded. But had the accident been fatal, its most likely that we would have needed blood transfusions to survive.



Donate blood and save a life

 In that bus was your mother, father, sister, brother, auntie, nephew, cousin etc but saving our lives would not have been that easy because the availability of BLOOD at ZNBTS cannot always be guranteed. Blood donation in Zambia is very low and lives are being lost because of it. I say thank you to all the BLOOD DONORS and if you are not one, please think about becoming one. You never know whose life you will save, it just might even be yours.

Nurses win pay rise

ZUNO STATEMENT

Nurses and midwives have earned a graded salary increase that improved their take home pay by 21 per cent during the salary negotiations between Zambia Union of Nurses Organisation (ZUNO) and the government that ended on Tuesday April, 2 2013.

Nurses

The salary increment will be based on the results of the Job Evaluation and Re-grading (JERG) exercise that government has embarked on and will be effective on 1^st September, 2013.

The negotiations saw nurses and midwives being awarded a new exclusive duty facilitating allowance called Health Personnel Shift Differential, and an increase in the Commuted Night Duty allowance.

And speaking in a statement, ZUNO described the just ended negotiations for salaries and other conditions of service for nurses and midwives in the civil service as progressive.

ZUNO President Thom Yung'ana said that this year’s negotiations were meant to correct distortions that existed in the different medical salary scales and were a firm foundation for overhauling the pay system for the civil service.

Mr Yung'ana said that the civil servants’ pay structure was riddled with distortions among the salary scales that tended to favour certain sectors giving rise to the distortions.

“Currently, the pay structure is such that certain cadres were getting different salaries though doing the same job. And this structure does not recognise the qualifications of the incumbents nor the intensity of the jobs involved. And this year’s negotiations were meant to address such concerns,” he said.

He said that the union and the government were working together to bring about reforms in the way nurses and midwives were remunerated and that this process would take time to be fully implemented.

 “This year we are implementing the JERG which will also involve the validation and re-evaluation of certain jobs in the medical scales. This will be done by the incumbents and this process shall go on up to August 2013,” Mr Yung'ana said.

During this period, the union and the government would also review and develop staff structures in the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Community Development, Mother and Child Health to accommodate health professionals who are degree holders in the clinical area in addition to administration and nursing education.

“Further, this period between March and August will also be used for other consultations and appeals from the job incumbents before the JERG results can be implemented on 1^st September, 2013,” he said.

Mr Yung'ana called the nurses and midwives to continue being professional in all their conduct and assured them that the results of the 2013 would only be effective for four months before the union engages government for the 2014 improved salaries and other conditions of service.PYM

Eat Right And Prevent Cancer

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

Though the human body is susceptible to over 200 different types of cancer, diet alone is said to be responsible for causing one to two thirds of all cancers.

The human body has four main cancer fighting systems in place, and these also help prevent a recurrence.

Professor Parham

 Professor Groesbeck Parham MD, of the African Center of Excellence for Women’s Cancer Control says "the human body can help prevent a lot of these cancers if we would change our diets."

The liver which is the detoxifying organ in the body, is responsible for removing all toxins from the blood stream. The liver also makes bile, a substance that modifies fat so it can be absorbed and turned into secondary bile acids that promote cancer by bacteria.

“What determines the type of bacteria in your intestines is what you eat. If you eat, grains, fruits, beans, legumes, you will have healthy bacteria. If you eat a lot of red meat, you have harmful bacteria,” says Professor Parham.

One of the food components that help the waste disposal system is fibre.  It increases the speed at which food that is eaten exits the body. It also ushers out the toxins and transform bacteria from harmful to a healthy ones.

Fibre is found in grains, oatmeal, fruits, beans and legumes.

Professor Parham explains that "fibre is not in any animal product (as can be seen from above examples). It is in products that grow in the ground.  And if you want to keep your intestine healthy and keep your waste disposal working well, you have to put a lot of fibre in your body everyday.”

It goes without saying much that animal products such as chicken, beef, pork, cheese all harm the waste disposal system because they have no fibre. However, dark, lean leafy vegetables are full of antioxidants that help prevent cancer. Examples of such vegetables are tomatoes, guava, watermelons, carrots, mangoes, papaya, sweet potatoes, oranges, tangerines, lemons, strawberries, bananas, pineapple, broccoli, lime.

“Zambia has some of the greatest green leafy vegetables. You eat the roots plus you eat the top. You can eat the green tops of beans, pumpkins, sweet potatoes. That is the smartest thing I have ever seen in a diet,” notes Professor Parham.

Cooked animal productions, especially meats, harm the antioxidants in the human body. Present in all meats are amino acids called Creatine. This is present in all meats including fish, when grilled, fried or boiled at high temperatures; it makes Hydroxycitric Acid (HCA), a cancer causing agent. HCA increases the risk of breast and colon cancer.

The longer the meat is cooked, the higher the levels of HCA. If meat is boiled or grilled over hot flame, it produces another toxic agent called Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs). The more intense the heat, the higher the level of PAH which increases the risk of stomach cancers.

Fortunately, foods such as squash, kale, spinach, turmeric, garlic and onions all stimulate the immune system which is responsible for destroying foreign invaders such as viruses, cancer cells and carcigeons.

Turmeric

Turmeric is said to be one of the world’s most powerful stimulants known to man.

Most harmful to the immune system is fat. While there are two kinds of fat, vegetable and animal fats, neither one is good, but vegetable fat which has Omega3 found in Canola, Olive and Flax seed oil is said to be better. The worst fat comes from meat, which has Omega 6 (like butter), it slows down the immune system and does not respond just as fast.

The detoxification system consists of the liver, the colon, the skin and the lungs. The liver has a system of enzymes that detoxify cancer causing substances and make it more water soluble and are excreted through urination, sweating, breathing, and defecation.

Enzymes can be stimulated to work better by eating foods such as Cabbage, Broccoli, Brussel sprours, Oranges, Tangerines, and Turmeric.

Professor Parham advises that "the bottom line is eat intelligently, when you go to the stores, buy something yellow, green, red, orange, pink, and not something brown. Eat like your grandparents used to eat in the village. And try and eliminate animal products.

“If you are going to drink milk, try and drink soy milk. Cow’s milk has a protein in it called whey, one of the worst proteins you can put in your body," concluded Pro. Parham.PYM

CIDRZ Cervical Cancer screening sites

By Meluse Kapatamoyo

The Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ) started its cervical cancer screening program in 2006.

Zambia has the second highest rate of cervical cancer in the world after Guinea.

According to Dr Sharon Kapambwe, Head of the Cervical Cancer Prevention Programme in Zambia, more than 99, 000 women have been screened and of these 14, 000 were treated with pre-cancer lesions.

“Cervical cancer is the most common cancer in Zambia regardless of gender and causes more deaths in women than any other cancer. Most cases that we get are advanced and we are seeing younger women with pre-cancer lesions,” she said.

Below is a list of CIDRZ Cervical Cancer screening sites dotted around the country.

1.    Bauleni Clinic

A woman undergoing screening

2.    Chawama Clinic

3.    Chelston Clinic

4.    George Clinic

5.    Chilenje Clinic

6.    Kanyama Clinic

7.    Matero Clinic

8.    Kalingalinga Clinic

9.    M’tendere Clinic

10. Ngombe Clinic

11. University Teaching Hospital (UTH)

12. Chongwe Clinic

13. Kafue Clinic

14. Monze Mission Hospital

15. Chipata General Hospital

16. Katete Mission

17. Kabwe  General Hospital

18. Ndola Central Hospital

19. Kitwe General Hospital

20. Monze Mission Hospital

For information on Cervical cancer click here; http://pokeyourmind.blogspot.com/2013/02/your-quick-q-on-cervical-cancer.html#!/2013/02/your-quick-q-on-cervical-cancer.html