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Seek medical care when children consume poison – Paediatrician

Dr Seyram Wordui

The use of palm oil to induce vomiting when a child takes poison is one of the common practices in many homes.

However, a Paediatrician and the Chief Executive Officer of BabyChildandCo, Dr Seyram Wordui has warned that it is a dangerous practice which does more harm than good to a child.

In an interview with The Spectator on Monday, she explained that any attempt to induce vomiting by palm oil or any other substance or means should be discouraged because the poison would still be in the digestive system of the child and could lead to re-poisoning.

She said there was also the chances of more absorption of the poison by the child which could go the wrong way such as the lungs, airway among others which could aggravate the situation.

Dr. Wordui said trying to induce vomiting was also time consuming and that it was best to get to the hospital as early as possible when someone consumed poison.

On steps to take when poisoning occurred, she said that it was important to rinse the mouth of the child and make him or her spit it out to reduce continuous source of absorption because there could still be an amount of the poison in the mouth.

The Paediatrician said the clothes of the child should also be removed for a quick bath because some chemicals got absorbed when they came into contact with the skin.

She said ideally, the poison should be taken together with the child to the hospital but was quick to add that it should be well packaged to prevent continuous poisoning during transportation of the child and others to a health facility.

She explained that taking the poison to the hospital helped health workers to decide what to quickly do for the child because” some poisons have specific antidotes to neutralise them”.

The CEO for BabyChildandCo said in the case of poisoning caused by medicine, it was advisable to take the prescription along.

She said it was important to keep harmful substances out of the reach and sight of children because poisoning could lead to their death or make them severely ill.

She said some poisons when swallowed could cause the oesophagus of a child to shrink or become smaller or sometimes close it which necessitated an operation.

She said for parents that could be a traumatic experience so it was important for everyone to be responsible and make a conscious effort to prevent children who were obviously inquisitive to stay out of danger.

She advised that poisonous substances such as pesticides, detergents, bleaches among others should not he kept in water, beverage bottles or cosmetic containers as children were more likely to wrongly assume them to be water or food and would not take the trouble to smell them before consumption.

Dr Wordui said batteries from remote controls, mobile phones etc should also be kept out of the reach of children.

She said for medicines from the hospital or bought Over The Counter, it was better to keep them under lock and key.

From Dzifa Tetteh Tay, Tema

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GEXIM deepens relations with US EXIM Bank

A management team of the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) led by the Acting Chief Executive, Sylvester Mensah met with the leadership of the Export–Import Bank of the United States (US EXIM) on Wednesday April 23, 2025 in Washington DC, United States of America.

The Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM, Mr. James C. Cruse and Vice President, International Relations, Ms. Isabel Galdiz received the GEXIM delegation, which included Deputy CEO for Banking, Mr. Moses Klu Mensah and Head of International Cooperation, Mr. Jonathan Christopher Koney at the headquarters of US EXIM.

The meeting offered the GEXIM team the opportunity to share the strategic direction of the Bank in line with the resetting agenda of the President of the Republic, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama for the repositioning of the Ghanaian economy into an export-led one by providing the requisite investment to Ghanaian businesses.

Mr. James C. Cruse expressed US EXIM’s eagerness to deepen its existing relations with GEXIM and proposed the signing of a new Cooperative Framework Agreement following the expiration of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2019 to utilize US EXIM’s medium term loan guarantees to procure machinery by GEXIM for qualified Ghanaian Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).

Mr.Sylvester Mensah thanked the Acting President and Chairman of US EXIM for hosting the GEXIM delegation and reaffirmed the Ghanaian government’s commitment to strengthening trade and investment between Ghana and its global partners for economic transformation of Ghana with GEXIM playing a pivotal role.

The two teams will be meeting on the sidelines of the 2025 US EXIM Annual Conference on 29th and April 30, 2025 to explore possible areas of collaboration and matching Ghanaian businesses to American companies. The meeting ended with an exchange of gifts.

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Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation –Pres.Mahama

President John Dramani Mahama has expressed concern over the misuse of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) for personal financial gain by individuals in leadership positions.

Speaking during a meeting with Chief Executives of specified entities under the State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA) on Thursday, March 13, the President directly attributed the dire state of SOEs to their leadership, accusing chief executives, management teams, and governing boards of prioritising personal enrichment over organisational efficiency.

He pointed to bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures as factors draining public funds while SOEs continue to rely on government bailouts.

“Many SOEs have been used as mere instruments for personal wealth accumulation by appointees. The chief executives, management, and boards of these enterprises are responsible for this situation. Some SOEs have become perennial loss-makers, draining public funds with bloated budgets, unjustified allowances, and unnecessary expenditures while relying on government bailouts as if entitled to them. Many of these entities are at their lowest point in the entire history of the Fourth Republic,” he said.

President Mahama further noted that many SOEs have been plagued by inefficiencies, corruption, and mismanagement, leading to consistent financial losses. He cited the 2023 State Ownership Report by the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), which highlighted systemic inefficiencies and wasteful expenditures within these entities.

He therefore reaffirmed his commitment to reforming under-performing SOEs and ensuring they serve national interests.

He warned that loss-making SOEs will no longer be tolerated and will either be merged, privatised, or closed.

“I will assess you based on your performance. If you do not align with the pace of the reset agenda, you may be asked to step aside. If that adds to the horror movie, so be it,” he added.

Source: Myjoyonline.com