Life Transformation For Africa Initiative Embarked on Free Medical Health Outreach on Diabetes and Blood Pressure Screening At Ngor Okpala LGA, August 2019
Diabetes still remains a global health emergency and also still prevalent in almost all communities world Worldwide, with developing nation having more Prevalence due to lack of awareness, economic impact, financial burden and higher cost of diabetes management.
Aside from this it is also sad to say, that after over 100 years of the discovery of Insulin, it still remains scarce to access in developing nations. With the inexorable rise of type 2 diabetes, it has pertinent on the need for Government, Health Service Practitioners and Civil Society Organisations to take up the responsibility in ensuring that the prevalence of diabetes is mitigated.
In ensuring we contribute to the actualization goal 1 (No poverty) and goal 3 (Good Health and Well-being) of the Sustainable Development Goals 2030, we remain relentless in our quest to bring about a Universal Health Coverage for all.
In achieving these, the staff and volunteers of LIFT4Africa went for a medical outreach at Odah a community located at Ohekelem autonomous community, Ngor Okpala LGA. The outreach comprised of both Fasting Blood Sugar(FBS) and Blood Pressure (BP) test. And at some point, we had to conduct Random Blood Sugar (RBS) test.
The 17th of August every year is said to be the day meant for the women’s ‘Annual August Meeting’. An event where all the women from that community are expected to return home from the diaspora and discuss pertinent issues and challenges facing the community and how to address and tackle them. We left Owerri and got to Odah village and arrived at the venue (Ohekelem central school) 9:15 am Upon our arrival, the women were already waiting.
The outreach was meant to identify and attend to women with high blood sugar and high blood pressure.
The team that went are the Executive Director, Ezeani Chiemezie, Mark Abraham (ICT program officer), Mr Caleb Chike (lab. Sci.) and Miss Obijekwu Serah ijeoma (nurse). The program officer on health was unavoidably absent so as to attend to her studies. Due to the timing, we had to also conduct a Random Blood Sugar test at some point, but had to plead with them that we would have to end the screening by 11:15 am so as to avoid inaccuracy in glucose readings and results. Though those women who weren’t screened were displeased upon hearing that, therefore we promised them that we would return in earnest. The general outcome was though satisfactory.
At the end of the program, we were able to attend to 52 women of which 3 mild and 2 critical cases was detected and they where later referred to Ohekelem Health Center which share the same premises with Ohekelem central school for check up. The program finally came to an end at 11:35 am. We thank the women for there understanding in allowing us reschedule the blood sugar and BP test. They showed their appreciation and thanked us for coming and said they would do their best to see we are invited for another round of test.
We left the village at 12 noon and got to owerri at 1:30pm.
