Funmi Ogundare
Daniel Ogechi Akujobi Memorial Foundation ( DOAM) in partnership with United Gospel Apostolic Church, recently held a one-day free medical outreach programme for indigenes of Ebute-Metta, Lagos State, aimed at ensuring the good health and wellbeing of marginalized communities.
The programme which was supported by Bond Chemical, was to commemorate the World Malaria Day themed, ‘Time to Deliver Zero Malaria: Invest, Innovate, Implement’.
It witnessed doctors and nurses creating health awareness, sensitising the community on proper hygiene and good sanitation practices, as well as carried out diagnostics and treatments of several ailments such as malaria, hypertension, diabetes, worm infestation, vitamin deficiencies on members of the community.
Speaking, the Health Programme Officer of the foundation, Mrs. Catherine Olukotun gave a brief talk about the various free medical outreaches it had conducted since the last 15 years since its establishment.
She explained that just like other health and education programmes being carried out in Lagos, the medical outreaches have also been held in different parts of the country including Imo, River, Edo, Oyo and Ogun States.
” Our objective is to continue to ally with the Sustainable Development Goals ( (SDGs) and ensure that marginalized communities have access to healthcare services,” she stated.
She added that the medical outreach, will increase awareness on health issues and the management of malaria, improved healthy lifestyles and minimised predisposition to preventable disease.
” It will go a long way in increasing human capital development and invariably move the community closer towards achieving the world health goals.”
Pastor Kekinde Ogun from the United Gospel Apostolic Church commended the Foundation for its initiative in impacting lives in the society, adding that he got to know of the foundation’s efforts through its website and decided to partner with it.
He also applauded the staff for their professionalism and thorough work done in ensuring the success of the programme.
The programme also witnessed a short talk on the importance on cultivating and maintaining good hygiene practice, by a seasoned medical practitioner, Mrs. Sammy Oladipupo.
Health Experts Warn against Stigmatising, Discrimination against People with Tuberculosis
Funmi Ogundare
Health Experts have warned against discriminating and stigmatising people affected by Tuberculosis (TB), noting that this discourages them from coming out for treatment.
They made this known at a one-day training, in Lagos, for journalists on key concepts in Tuberculosis Prevention and Control, organised by the Institute of Human Virology (IHVN) in collaboration with Breakthrough Action-Nigeria (BA-N) and Lagos State Ministry of Health.
The training was aimed at increasing the knowledge of media personnel on TB control efforts in Nigeria and improving quality of media reporting on the disease.
The Deputy Director and Programme Manager, Lagos State Tuberculosis, Leprosy, and Buruli Ulcer Control Programme, Dr. Olusola Sokoya, explained that TB is a chronic infectious disease transmitted through the air and caused by mycobacterium tuberculosis.
He stated that TB is one of the devastating diseases that have impact on our health globally and the entire country at large.
He added that the treatment is providing free diagnosis and treatment to people with TB in various health facilities across the state.
According to him, “TB is a preventable and curable disease. It is not a death sentence. Once you are diagnosed with TB, you will receive treatment for free at any general hospitals, some public primary health care centers and some private hospitals.”
Sokoya noted that Lagos state started the TB intervention programme in 2003 and that the state currently contributes 11 per cent of the national TB burden.
He said there are numerous yet-to-be-identified cases of TB, while appealing to the media to sensitise members of the public on the need to get tested and treated for TB, as it is curable, compared to other ailments like hypertension, diabetes or malaria.
Senior Programme Officer II TB/RCCE, USAID Breakthrough Action-Nigeria, Dr. Joseph Edor listed some of the symptoms of TB including; night sweats, coughing for more than two weeks, weight loss, fever, and hemoptysis (blood in cough).
He also explained that the risk factors for TB are germs which spread easily in overcrowded area, and that it is often common in areas with high population density.
He encouraged people to go for testing and chest X-rays in any of the public health facilities across the state, to reduce the spread of the airborne disease.
“Once you are treating TB, you won’t take the drugs for life. It is just for six months. Once you start taking the treatment and medication, you will no longer be able to transmit TB after the first two weeks,” Edor stated.
The Lagos State Team Lead, USAID IHVN TB LON 3 Project, Dr. Babajide Kadiri, disclosed that children can also contract the disease, adding that TB in children under 15 years of age is a public health problem of social significance as it represents a recent transmission from an infectious adult.
He stressed the need for adults and children to go for treatment, as it is free and the disease is curable.
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