Namibia: Illegal Abortions Common Despite Risks

This article, published on October 7, 2009, discusses the prevalance of illegal abortion cases in Namibia. At one point, Namibia tried to legalize abortion but failed to do so. Since then, unplanned pregnancies have been common, leading to many illegal abortions. The article explains the many people are either unwilling or unable to use contraceptives. Misoprostol is the drug that is commonly used in Namibia for these illegal abortions. This drug was commonly used to treat ulcers. Pharmacists are available in the streets to sell this drug. The cost is somewhere around $14 US dollars per pill.
The article explains the story of a college student in Namibia who bought 5 pills for $113 dollars. She said that she had no complications and that it felt like a really bad menstrual cycle. The drug Misoprostol is also known as Cytotec (used for ulcers) and should only be given to those with a medical doctor prescription. One pharmacist tells that she only sells the pills to people who are referred to her because it is a risky business and she doesn't want to get caught by the police. She stated that she needs the extra money and she believes that she is helping women who need it. She buys the pills in packets of 56 for 50 dollars and sells each for $14, leaving her a tremendous profit. The article goes on to explain the many cases that lead to health problems and death. The bodies of the fetus' are often found by the police force.
One comment from the pharmacist that stuck out to me was, "It's not like we are killing babies, I only sell Cytotec tablets to those whose pregnancy is less than three months to minimise the risk of fatal complications."
This article upsets me. Not only are these women killing a child, but they are also hurting themselves in the process. It was also discussed about legalizing abortion again recently because of all of the deaths and problems that occur in the women who try to do it illegaly. I believe that this is absolutely a horrible and wrong idea. I think that if the people were trying to decrease the problem, they would make contraceptives free and have people teach about the many potential risks to abortion. I also find it sad that so many lives are being destroyed and not even being given a chance to live. The comment by the pharmacist angers me. She does not believe that what she is doing is wrong. These people need to be taught what right and wrong is. She is not helping these women, she is potentially harming them.

References: http://allafrica.com/stories/200910080001.html

Zuma : Too many guns in South Africa

This article was posted on October 8th, 2009 by a news reporter in South Africa. The article discusses the overpopulation of guns (most with proper documentation) in South Africa and the need for more strict laws regarding gun ownership. President Zuma of South Africa commented on the need for new laws including a "shoot-to-kill" law with the power to kill violent criminals. Many people attended this speech given by Zuma, and were proud to hear that gun control had not been forgotten by Zuma and the government. At the end of the article, an organization called Gun Free South Africa was mentioned. This organization was created in 1994 in order to decrease the amount of violence and making South Africa a safe place.
I have added a website for GFSA with more information regarding the organization. I think that it is amazing how much gun violence there is in South Africa. Here in Waterloo alone, we are worried about the shootings going on recently and are terrified. These people witness these things every day of their lives, and most of them come to expect it. It is sad that the people are worried that they will live in fear and have to call their country unsafe. Hopefully President Zuma can pass a few laws regarding the gun chaos.
Also, I would like to add that I met someone who lived in South Africa. He is 20 years old and moved to the US when he was around 10 years old. I spoke to him about my plans to travel to Africa someday. I told him that I am interested in going on a mission trip as well as traveling on a safari! The first thing that he said to me was, "I would make sure you get alot of information before you go and make sure that you stay safe." When I asked him what he meant, he told me that in some places in Africa, people will kill you just because they can. He said that it isn't far from a "good area" to a "bad" one. He moved to the US because life was hard in South Africa. When I read this article, I automatically thought of the conversation I had with my friend.

Reference: http://www.africanews.com/site/Zuma_Too_many_guns_in_SA/list_messages/27356

More Than 4 Million HIV- Positive People Recieving Treatment

This article was written on October 1, 2009. The World Health Organization (WHO) says that over 4 million Africans are receiving anti-retroviral treatment for HIV/AIDS. The best treatment progress is in sub-Saharan Africa, which is where two-thirds of HIV infections occur. An increase of 36% more people per year are receiving treatment in 2009 compared to 2008. Those at WHO and other organizations believe that this is still not enough. Treatment is being started too late because people do not come to the hospital until they are sick. This leads to a late diagnosis, which has a major impact on the survival rate. Many of those being treated are dying within the first year of treatment.
The price of the anti-retroviral drugs have decreased greatly in recent years, which is a great start to increasing the number of those who receive treatment. The main groups of people who receive treatment as of now include women and children. Many pregnant women (45%) who are HIV positive receive treatment in order to prevent the spread of the virus to their child. The number of children under the age of 15 years receiving treatment has also increased. Treatment has risen from 50,000 sub-Saharan Africans to over 3 million as of recent!
As a nursing student, this article grabbed my attention. As we have discussed in the class, HIV/AIDS is one of the common illness affecting Africa along with malaria and bilharzia. In my nursing education, we have learned about HIV and AIDS in the pathophysiological sense, but it was interesting to find an article about AIDS and how it affects a community. Sub-Saharan Africa seems to be struggling with HIV positive infections. It is reassuring to see that the numbers of treatment cases are increasing and the price of the treatment is decreasing. Hopefully this climb is steady. It would also be nice to see diagnoses being made earlier and more Africans coming in to pursue treatment.

Reference: http://www.africagoodnews.com/health/more-than-4-million-hiv-positive-people-receiving-treatment.html