When the story of launching of the Hepatitis policy to combat about 13.3% prevalent rate in the country hit the newsstands for public hearing, many citizens received it with mixed-feelings.
Even though some people interpreted the initiative as a good gesture since the country has never got such facilities and it will help those with the sickness to have respite that they will easily access medication and at the same time will deter the spread of the sickness, yet, some other group negated this notion and interpreted it as putting the cart before the horse. The critically minded group argued that the Health Ministry has a lot of trained and qualified Doctors including the ministers especially the Deputy Minister Professor, Dr. Charles Senesie who would trace the causes of the ailment, tackle it first before talking about combating mechanism. Without going to medical school to learn much about the causative agent of hepatitis, even the Vamboi in the suburb knows that too much stress-trauma, is one of the major causes of Hepatitis in the country. And all indications to Hepatitis is too much pressure in the mind which is the order of the day to majority of Sierra Leoneans.
The fact is, the alarming hunger situation in the country is partly caused by extreme poverty rate which many sober minded people believe that should be the primary concern of authorities in the country to handle before thinking about combating the prevalence. But without jumping into conclusion, many of these groups are curious to know if the implanters of this initiate are going to start their methodology from that angle so that their work will be smooth and speedy to combat the sick in the country.
The only prayer that many patriotic citizens in this country are doing is the actuality of the current SLPP agricultural project to tackle the endemic hunger menace.
In line with the prevailing hunger and poverty situation in the country, authorities in the Health Ministry should realize that until these two major problems are logically handled, their initiative of combating hepatitis will be a prolonged battle or better put a fruitless endeavor.