By Osa Mbonu-Amadi

The Lagos State NYSC Batch 2015 B best serving corps member and SDGs Advocate, Dr. Gracefm Paul Nkem, also known as Ogizeh Florence, recently in a lecture organized by Tourists Club International in Lagos, expressed concerns about the transmission of bacteria infectious diseases and the effects of resistance of bacteria to antibiotics.

Dr. Ogizeh said antimicrobial resistance is presently one of the major health crises threatening health, food and environmental security.

From her studies of data from high-income countries, Dr. Ogizeh found out that the death of 4.95 million people each year is linked to antimicrobial resistance, of which 1.27 million are directly connected to resistance to antibiotics.

And if not properly checked antimicrobial resistance will push 24 million people into extreme poverty by 2030 and result in extreme losses.  She said her fear is that should high-income countries have such a data, then the effects in low-income countries and communities will be extremely high.

Dr. Ogizeh Florence who is the present Managing Director of Gracefm Seda Services Limited, Assistant National Secretary of National Citrus Growers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture IITA-trained Agriculturist and Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi, FIIRO-trained food processor, listed some of the causes of antimicrobial resistance that can be easily mitigated if prompt action is taken: Environmental pollution, food contamination, malnutrition, improper hygiene, drug abuse, and falsified antimicrobial (fake antibiotics).

She expressed her fear of what would be the adverse effects and negative outcome if the above causes are left unchecked. “I am therefore using this medium to create awareness, as well as sending appeal to all stakeholders to engage in actions that can help savage this one heath crises,” she said.

Ogizeh also said she and her team have developed a tech-driven community database antimicrobial resistance solution that is focused on social and community impact of the underserved and most vulnerable in low-income communities.

She therefore appeals that the federal and state governments, as well as funding organizations, policy makers and license issuers such as NAFDAC, should encourage and support solutions that would help salvage this one heath crises before it turns into a pandemic that will be out of control.