Na serious matter wey dey ground oh! New study don touch light say drug-resistant infections don dey waka pass in plenty African countries, Nigeria no dey left behind.

Di Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) carry dis gist come out for Abuja, talk say dem map antimicrobial resistance dey spread like wildfire. Dis report no be small wahala, e reveal say research involve more than 187,000 lab test results from 205 labs for 14 countries wey include Nigeria. Na from 2016 go 2019 dem gather di samples, and wetin dem find no dey jolly at all!

Dem researchers find say bacteria wey dey cause serious infections like E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Klebsiella pneumoniae don dey show level of resistance wey fit make anybody fear. For Ghana and Malawi, dem show say resistance to third-generation cephalosporins, wey na big antibiotics, don high pass any waka wey dem don see before.

Na so e be, for six countries, more than half of Staphylococcus aureus samples don dey resistant to methicillin. For Nigeria and Ghana, di resistance levels don dey above 70 percent! Na bad news be dat.

Di Africa CDC don talk say some groups dey more likely to catch dis drug-resistant infections. Old pipo wey don reach 65 years and above dey 28 percent more likely to jam am than younger people. And if you don enter hospital, your risk don increase by 24 percent. Wetin make am worse be say if person don use antibiotics before, dat one dey increase chance of resistance too.

Dr Gabriel Adakole wey be Public Health expert talk say dis kind wahala dey show say Nigeria health sector need serious attention, especially hospitals and treatment centers. He mention say Nigeria dey try to strengthen surveillance for antimicrobial resistance through di Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and their partners, but gaps still dey for routine testing and data reporting.

He don also warn say misuse of antibiotics, like self-medication and buying over-the-counter, dey contribute to dis rising resistance matter. E no too good, you sabi!

Sabi say despite di wahala wey dey grow, di report don show say plenty health facilities for Africa no fit test for bacterial infections, less than two percent? Na serious level oh! And only 12 percent of resistance records dey linked to patient information. Na wetin we go do now?

Dr Yewande Alimi, wey lead di One Health Unit for Africa CDC, talk say di quality of AMR data dey different across countries. Senegal dey shine for data management while Sierra Leone get kasala for data collection. Many labs still dey use handwritten registers talk less of say dem get digital systems.

Di study wey get support from UK Fleming Fund and US CDC dey call for more investment in laboratory services, routine testing, and better data systems. E mean say time dey come for African countries to join hand build strong action against antimicrobial resistance.

According to WHO, antimicrobial resistance na big public health threat wey need serious attention. For Nigeria and many African countries, antibiotics dey drop without prescription, and dat one dey contribute to resistance and treatment failure.

If dem no take stronger actions, drug-resistant infections fit scatter di progress wey we don make for healthcare and disease control. Di MAAP partners don drop dis report to guide African governments on better surveillance, treatment guidelines, and health planning. We must act fast, my people, make we no allow di wahala grow pass our hand!