Editorial
Ensure medication for RBC antibody screening is available, affordable
According to a recent study, the lack of routine RBC antibody screening in the majority of hospitals is a factor in newborn fatalities, preterm deliveries, and stillbirths.
RBC antibody screening is a blood test which is essential for blood transfusions and pregnancy because it looks for antibodies that can destroy foreign red blood cells.
Based on the recent research, Dr. (Mrs.) Lilian Antwi Boateng, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Medical Diagnostics at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana, estimates that these disorders occur at rates of 1.2 percent, 37.3 percent, and 2.3 percent, respectively.
Despite the fact that two injections administered during pregnancy and soon after delivery can virtually completely prevent sensitisation almost entirely, access remains limited. Furthermore, many women are left unprotected since the medication, which costs roughly GH₵750 each dose, is either unavailable or too expensive.
The cost of screening for RBC is affecting expectant mothers as most of them cannot afford to undergo the screening. As a result many babies are at risk of preventable complications and death.
It is therefore not a surprise that, according to the study, only 49 per cent of eligible mothers had received the injections, far below the World Health Organisation’s recommendation of 100 per cent coverage.
The WHO recommends that RBC antibody screening should be a routine part of pre-transfusion testing and antenatal screening to ensure blood safety and prevent alloimmune complications. Alloimmune complications are adverse effects that occur when the body’s immune system attacks foreign cells, such as those from a different person or during pregnancy.
In view of that, health experts have called for urgent reforms: routine antenatal RBC antibody screening, enforcement of national protocols for RhD immunoprophylaxis, and inclusion of anti-D immunoglobulin in the National Health Insurance Scheme. They also recommend training healthcare providers to detect and manage maternal antibodies.
The Spectator is making a passionate appeal to the government to urgently include the cost of screening of RBC antibodies among others in the National Health Insurance, for every baby deserves the chance to be born healthy.
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Dear Editor,
I write to express deep concern about the increasingly harmful influence social media is having on children in our communities. What was once intended to be a tool for learning, creativity, and connection has now become a major source of distraction, pressure, and moral decline among many of our young people.
Today, children spend countless hours on platforms that expose them to inappropriate content, cyberbullying, and harmful trends. Instead of focusing on their studies, developing social skills, or engaging in healthy activities, many are glued to their screens—losing sleep, losing confidence, and sometimes even losing their sense of reality.
The rise in cases of depression, anxiety, peer pressure, and poor academic performance among young people can no longer be ignored. Even more worrying is how quickly harmful content, violence, explicit material, and dangerous challenges can spread across these platforms, reaching children faster than parents or teachers can intervene.
It is evident that while technology has its benefits, the lack of proper regulation and supervision has left our children vulnerable. Parents must become more proactive in monitoring what their children consume online, schools must strengthen digital literacy education, and authorities should consider stricter policies to protect minors from harmful online exposure.
We cannot sit back and watch the future generation be shaped by uncontrolled digital influences. It is time for all stakeholders to work together to ensure that social media becomes a safer, more positive space for our children.
— James Brown,
Akosombo
Dear Editor,
Please permit me to use your respected medium to commend the Ghana Police Service (GPS) for the decision not to grant leave requests for personnel during the Christmas season. This annual ritual is a clear demonstration that the service is mindful of the need to observe the yuletide in a serene and peaceful atmosphere devoid of difficulties and crimes.
It may not be a pleasant piece of news for the men and women in uniform, but they would be the first to appreciate the fact that the nature of the celebration requires their presence at all times.
My concern, however, is that despite the police visibility, crimes were still perpetrated at certain places. This means that whenever the police take such decisions, criminals also find their way around. My observation is that because personnel are stationed at specific locations, perpetrators carry out their activities where police visibility is low.
I want to suggest that the police administration intensify patrols in areas identified as crime zones to avert attacks. I also wish to advise all agencies responsible for maintaining law and order not to go to sleep. They must be awake to control pubs, drinking bars, eating joints, beaches, and other public gathering spots.
Citizens must also put up their best behaviour to ensure that we have a peaceful Christmas season and reflect on the reason for the celebration.
— Sandra Owusuaa,
Kasoa
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