Health
Health: FCTA kick off Screening of over 250,000 Abuja Residents
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By Laide Akinboade, Abuja
The Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, on Wednesday, kicked starts the screening of over 250,000 Abuja residents on diabetes and hypertension, and also do referrals.
Dr Adedolapo Fasawe the Mandate secretary of Federal Capital Territory Health and Environmental Services Secretariat (FCT-HESS, while declaring the one week screening open, in Abuja. She raised alarm at the rate at which people slump and die of high blood pressure and diabetes, adding that these unnecessary deaths can be prevented by regularly checking your sugar level and your blood pressure. She lamented that diabetes and hypertension are two silent killers and noted that, North central has one of the highest number of diabetes and hypertension. And 40% didn’t know they have hypertension until they came across a program like this.According to her, “So, this is an initiative of all commissioners for Health in Nigeria; 36 states plus the FCT. I am happy to say here in the FCT, we have had several programmes similar to this. We had a medical palliative program whereby we gave people medicines for free, for whatever their ailments is for one month. So that the money they would have used to buy medicines, they would use for other things. And we encourage the Health Insurance Scheme, whereby you pay a token, if you can afford it and your healthcare is free for the year. Or if you are considered vulnerable or poor, you are registered for free.”Now, what motivated this, we started noticing that people were slumping and dying. The rate of non-communicable diseases is going high. We were focusing a lot on HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis. But all of a sudden, people are dropping dead, and older people who were otherwise healthy in the morning would slump in the afternoon. At post-mortem, we were realising that people had undiagnosed heart diseases, which is a complication of undiagnosed hypertension. Hypertension is a very treatable disease if caught early. Diabetes is a very treatable disease if caught early. Treatable in the sense that if you adhere to your doctor’s instructions, and take your medication, you will live a normal life”.She continued, “Out of every 27 Nigerians, one person is hypertensive, this is recorded. Now, we are trying to look for all these people, educate them, and give them medication, so that your quality of life, your output at work, and in the end, the GDP of the nation would be improved. Because with this RHA, we constantly look for ways to reach the people and touch them. And the essence of this program also is that people find it hard to leave their workplace where they get money, their markets, and their farms, to go to the hospital to check. “We are taking this project 10 million to the doorstep of people, where they live, where they work, where they play. We will be in every Area council, we will be in most chiefdoms and palaces, we will be in markets, we will be in places like this where most people aggregate, and the good news is, it will run for one week. If you can’t make it today, you will make it tomorrow. And I believe at the end of this, the saying ‘health is wealth’ will truly be understood. Without good health, we cannot enjoy the beautiful infrastructure that the FCT is putting up daily”.”This program is not only for those who are suffering from hypertension or diabetes. It is also for people who we find their results to be normal. When we find their results to be normal, our screening tool has some questions; do you smoke? Do you exercise? What is your diet like, what is your lifestyle like? If the result is normal, we will encourage you and teach you how to keep it normal. That means you have been doing something good.”For people we have found to have normal readings, we encourage them and teach them how to keep it normal. They are also a very integral part of this program. It’s called health promotion. Prevention is better than cure. We can learn from them what they have been doing, we can teach them to teach their neighbours how to keep their blood pressure and blood sugar normal. And if indeed within this secretariat, we are finding normal readings, the risk factors for high blood pressure include stress, sleeplessness, obesity, family history, and sedentary lifestyle. What it then means is that most of us here, do not fall into that. If you work for Barrister Nyesom Wike, it is not likely that you have a sedentary lifestyle”.The Acting Director of the FCT Health Insurance Scheme, Dr Salma Lawal Belgore also announced that the FCT will undertake the cost of health services for a pregnant woman, Mrs Esther Omojo, until a year after the birth of her baby. She explained that the insurance will cover medical consultations, drugs, delivery and even surgery.“Our patient will benefit from medical consultation, lab investigations, her drugs, her delivery and even if she has to have surgery, it is all covered by the health insurance scheme, at no cost to her. The FCT Administration is enrolling her under the health insurance scheme, as well as all FCT residents. With the unborn baby, and a year after the baby is born, the baby is also going to be covered under the health insurance scheme, and will access medicines, medical consultations, and lab investigations at no cost to the mother or the baby”, she said.Health
FG Prioritises Cancer Prevention, Maternal Health in 2025 Budget
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The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to health education and prevention strategies, with a strong focus on cancer prevention and maternal health in its 2025 budget.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, made this known during a meeting on Thursday in Abuja, with a delegation from the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), led by its Executive Vice-President for Infectious Diseases, Dr David Ripin.
Salako highlighted the heavy burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including cancer, hypertension, and diabetes, stressing that early detection and prevention would be a major focus of the ministry’s budget next year.
“This year in our budget, we are focusing a lot of attention on cancer. A lot of that funding will go into prevention at both primary and secondary levels, including screening and population prevention,” he said.
The minister also disclosed that the government had inaugurated the Maternal Mortality Reduction Innovation Initiative to tackle high maternal deaths, particularly in high-burden local government areas.
According to him, introducing low-cost technologies like ultrasound scans in maternal care will help drive more women to seek antenatal care, ultimately reducing mortality rates.
He commended CHAI for its partnership, emphasising that collaborations would enhance healthcare outcomes for Nigerians.
Dr Olufunke Fasawe, CHAI’s Country Director, detailed the organisation’s contributions to improving healthcare access in Nigeria.
She revealed that CHAI has supported over 20 cancer treatment centres across the country.
“The organisation worked with the Federal Ministry of Health to cut the cost of chemotherapy by 50 per cent to improve affordability.
“HPV screening for cervical cancer has been expanded, with over 57,000 women screened so far.
“CHAI successfully reduced the price of HPV test kits from 20 dollars to seven dollars, making screening more accessible to women,” she highlighted. (NAN)
Health
Suspected Cholera Outbreak kills 9 in Rivers
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The Rivers government has announced the death of nine individuals following a suspected cholera outbreak in Andoni and Akuku-Toru Local Government Areas.
Dr Ada Oreh, the state Commissioner for Health, confirmed the development on Thursday in Port Harcourt.
She said that three deaths occurred in Andoni, while six others were recorded in Akuku-Toru, with 41 suspected cases currently under monitoring across the two areas.
“We urge the public not to panic, as the state government has already implemented measures to contain this outbreak,” Oreh said.
The commissioner noted that health officials were conducting tests to determine definitively whether the deaths were caused by cholera.
She, however, said: “The symptoms observed align with the surveillance case definition for the disease.
“The ministry is also investigating a suspected outbreak of acute watery diarrhoea caused by cholera in the Isiodun community in Andoni LGA.
“The symptoms analysed are consistent with cholera.”
According to Oreh, the bacteria responsible for cholera thrives in environments lacking access to safe drinking water, adequate sanitation, and hygienic conditions.
She said that the bacteria could be transmitted through the consumption of contaminated water or food and contact with infected surfaces.
“Rivers is particularly prone to outbreaks of acute watery diarrhoea and cholera during the dry seasons.
“This poses significant public health challenges due to the high morbidity and mortality rates associated with such outbreaks.
“The ministry, in collaboration with its partners and the authorities in Andoni LGA, has activated emergency response measures.
“Our rapid response team has also been deployed to the affected areas to enhance disease surveillance, strengthen case detection in health facilities, and supply essential supplies to the communities,” Oreh stated.
Oreh said the response team had distributed oral rehydration solutions, intravenous fluids, and vital medicines to health centres in the affected areas.
She advised residents to practice frequent hand washing with soap and clean water, particularly before eating and after using the toilet.
Oreh also urged them to drink only boiled or chorine-treated water to ensure safety. (NAN)
Health
FCTA to Begin 2024 Mass Deworming Campaign for Children in February
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The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) Public Health Department has announced that the 2024 Spill-over Mass Administration of Medicine (MAM) to deworm children against schistosomiasis and soil helminthiasis would begin on Feb.
17.The initiative, which will run from February 17 to 21, was discussed at a stakeholders meeting held in Abuja on Wednesday. Reports also said that the MAM exercise will be carried out in four area councils of the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Bwari, Gwagwalada, and Kuje, targeting children between the ages of 5 and 14 years. The campaign follows the suspension of the earlier MAM exercise in Abaji and Kwali in December 2024, which was delayed due to the planned strike by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).Dr Eunice Ogundipe, FCT Coordinator for Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), who was represented by Mrs Lami Ndayako, explained that the stakeholders meeting was aimed at sensitising the public to the upcoming MAM exercise.She stressed that the medicine for schistosomiasis and soil helminthiasis should be administered to children only after they have eaten.Ogundipe emphasised that local community stakeholders would play a crucial role in spreading awareness about the importance of the medicine.“These stakeholders are respected in their communities and will help ensure the exercise is successful,” she stated.Mr Achai Ijah, Programme Officer at the FCT Health and Development Support Programme (HANDS), noted that the involvement of key community leaders, including traditional and religious leaders, would help boost acceptance of the MAM programme.Mrs Imaobong Okorie-Umah, Deputy Director at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, said the ministry would review its approach and adopt new strategies to ensure that people accept the medicine.Okorie-Umah, who is also the Programme Manager for Schistosomiasis and Soil Transmitted Helminthiasis at the ministry, encouraged parents to ensure their children eat enough food before taking the medicine.Mr Joseph Agbana, Coordinator of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), promised to ensure that private school proprietors educate parents about the deworming campaign.(NAN