The Festus Fajemilo Foundation in Nigeria has provided training for nurses and community workers on managing bowel and bladder incontinence in individuals with spina bifida.
This foundation aims to support those affected by spina bifida and hydrocephalus.
The training, conducted in collaboration with Shine Charity from the UK, focused on improving healthcare services for individuals with spina bifida.
The workshop aimed to enhance the skills and knowledge of healthcare professionals in Nigeria to improve the quality of life for those with spina bifida.
The foundation plans to expand their services to reach more individuals with spina bifida in the coming years.
He said, “The two-workshop for nurses from public health facilities and community outreach workers in incontinence care and management is being organized to enhance the skills, knowledge, and capacity to be able to deliver quality continence care and services across their various health facilities.
“It is also one of the activities under the Savings Lives! Improving Future Project is being sponsored by the United Kingdom Department of Health and Social Care and it’s one of the projects under the current Global Health Workforce Programme which is targeted at three African countries, Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana to strengthen their health workforce and systems following the effects of COVID-19 and the brain drain.”
Fajemilo said FFF trains nurses in public health facilities to support families who have children with spina bifida, to ensure they live a life of dignity.
“We are supporting the nurses through their places of work. So, currently, we are working with eight public teaching hospitals, namely;agos University Teaching Hospital; University College Hospital Ibadan, Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex; University of Benin Teaching Hospital; Rivers State University Teaching Hospital; Federal Medical Center Umuahia; Usman Dan Fodio University Teaching Hospital; Sokoto, and the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital.
“ We are supporting the hospitals to be able to have this as one of their hospital’s regular services”, he noted.
The executive director highlighted children with spina bifida do have associated challenges, which include leg deformities, poor sensation in their lower limbs, partial or total paralysis in the lower limbs, and more devastating bowel and incontinence.
Emphasizing the importance of prevention, he noted that a pregnant woman who is taking folic acid will reduce the incidence by 70 percent.
“So, we advocate precautionary use of folic acid. So everyone of reproductive age must take folic acid.
“There is a management procedure and what we are targeting in this project is bladder and bowel inconvenience that they come down with.
“We trained the nurses and outreach workers in clean intermittent catheterization. Under this project, we are enhancing the capacity of 81 nurses and eight outreach nurses across the country”, he stated.
Individuals with spina bifida often face challenges with bowel and bladder control due to nerve damage that affects the functioning of these organs.
“With no continence intervention, a significant proportion of children with spina bifida will experience kidney problems, which without treatment would result in renal failure.” They will also experience social issues such as isolation, low self-esteem, and possible psychological problems that may negatively impact their mental health”, he added.
Kate Steele, CEO of Shine UK, warned that inadequate continence management can lead to serious complications for individuals with spina bifida, including overactive bladder muscle and high-pressure urine storage, significantly impacting their quality of life.
Participants praised the training, expressing joy and gratitude for the valuable insights gained to enhance their work and improve outcomes for those with spina bifida.
Outreach workers Omowumi Mary Folaranmi and Peace Edward shared their experiences, highlighting the importance of the training in addressing challenges such as multiple disabilities and facilitating communication between families and healthcare providers.
They commended the Foundation for its impactful interventions and insightful training, emphasizing its significance in promoting independent living for children with spina bifida.
She added, “This is my first time doing face-to-face training because we usually have periodic virtual training sessions. However, this has been engaging and I have broader knowledge in continence management.”
