How you can help... continued.
COVID-19 Doesn’t Stop Nigerian Nurse and AU Graduate, Elisha Ishaya
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hen Elisha Friday Ishaya graduated from Africa University, he was excited about providing the best health care possible. Then COVID-19 hit. By late August, the 55 African Union Member States reporting COVID19 data had recorded more than a million cases and 27,000 deaths. According to the World Health Organization (July 29), more than 10,000 health workers in the 40 African countries that report such data had been infected. Job descriptions changed overnight, and health care workers like Ishaya faced a host of new challenges, including lack of protective equipment and medication, funding gaps, food insecurity and poor information systems, to name a few. “Despite the fact that the pandemic has been ongoing globally for over five months,” Ishaya said, “many still don’t believe that the coronavirus exists. All over the major cities, people can be seen not adhering to social distancing guidelines, not using masks, and not wearing gloves or sanitizing their hands.” Along with being at a high risk of virus transmission, health care workers are exposed to violence as people object to screening or quarantining. As security forces attempt to enforce lockdowns, it is not unusual for health
care workers to lose rental contracts, be denied access to shops or transportation, or experience physical assaults. A 2015 AU alumnus with a bachelor’s degree in nursing, Ishaya serves as a perioperative nurse at Federal Medical Centre Keffi in Nigeria. When his hospital became an official care center for the pandemic, the number of patients admitted for treatment and emergency surgery increased significantly. “Most of the [other] hospitals,” he said, “are no longer accepting patients due to fear of COVID-19.” Hope Triumphs over Despair But workers remain steadfast. Ishaya recalled preparations by a 50-member team for surgical separation of conjoined twins. “I was the team leader for the theater nurses and coordinator,” he said. Days before the scheduled surgery, he was one of 17 members of the 50-member medical team who tested positive for COVID-19. The surgery was done with limited personnel. After 14 days of quarantine, he was retested, and the result was negative. Ishaya is back on the job. “Glory be to God!” he said. Adapted from an article by Barbara Dunlap-Berg
NIH Grants Support Research
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U-based researchers gathered for training in July in preparation for collaborative research enquiries into the ongoing, multisectoral impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in southern Africa. “This program allows us to refresh and reassess the basic mechanisms to guarantee success in the research journey” said grant recipient, Munashe Kurehwatira. “It will be exciting to see our research informing policy, by providing the foundation for interventions to be successful and help the intended beneficiaries.” The AU Office of Research and Innovation,
Consider these additional ways of helping the university educate new leaders for the nations of Africa: Planned Gifts— The foundation for the long-term survival of Africa University. As you make your estate plans, consider leaving a gift or bequest to Africa University in your will. If you have already included the university in your estate plans, please let us know so we may welcome you to the Richard E. “Dick” Reeves Legacy Society. Usahwira — This word in the Shona language means “a beautiful friendship.” Encourage your local church to become a partner with Africa University by supporting one student for four years. The annual cost of supporting one undergraduate student is just under $6,000. Local churches may provide full or partial scholarships. Endowment Fund — Give to the Africa University Endowment Fund (World Service Special Gift #03-0188). The interest income from the endowment provides scholarships for our students. For more information about giving opportunities or to make a gift, visit us at support-africauniversity.org. To learn about Africa University and its impact, visit africau.edu. Let’s work together to continue the transformation of lives and of Africa. To download resources to help tell the story of the Africa University Fund apportionment, visit: umcgiving.org/auf and/or the resources page at support-africauniversity.org. Current resources include: • Africa University at 28 — Talking Points • Africa University: The School of Hope (video) • Usahwira (brochure) • AU in a Nutshell (presentation)
Africa University Development Office P.O. Box 340007 Nashville, TN 37203-0007 (615) 340-7438 Fax: (615) 340-7290 audevoffice@gbhem.org www.support-africauniversity.org
supported by the AU Clinical Research Center, organized the training.
