Participants at the 2017 Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) programme have organised a Hepatitis B and C screening exercise in Nandom.
The programme which also enrolled about 100 people onto the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) formed part of the YALI’s community service programme.
Madam Genevieve Yiripare, Nandom District Director of Health Services, commended the organisers of the programme saying the screening would help to improve the health of the people in the district.
“We are very grateful to the organisers for the support they have offered to us through the YALI programme,” she said.
Madam Yiripare said though malaria recorded the highest number of patients who attended the Out-Patient- Department (OPD), Serosae was toping at the Nandom Hospital and this is a matter of concern to the people.
Madam Yiripare urged all stakeholders, non-governmental organisations and benevolent groups to join in the effort to help improve health service delivery in the district.
Madam Maabier Mary Magdalene, Deputy Director of Nursing Services at the Nandom Hospital, said the hospital has recorded a high prevalence rate of Hepatitis B and C in the Nandom District and attributed its insurgence partly to poverty among the people.
Madam Maabier said inadequate equipment and logistics at the facility is a bane to their efforts at providing quality health care services to the people.
She called on government and benevolent organisations to come to the aid of the hospital to provide quality health care to the people
Mr Kuutuome Jacob, the Head of Procurement at the Saint Michael’s Hospital, said the programme is aimed at screening about 3000 people in the district to help them know their Hepatitis B and C status as a means of improving health care in the district.
He said in addition to the health screening, the five day event was also aimed at imparting entrepreneurial skills into the youth to help them develop alternative sources of livelihood rather than relying on the government for “white colour jobs”.
The team also visited the Nandom Midwifery Training College, Nandom and Ko Senior High Schools as well as the Saint Anne’s Vocational Training Schools to educate them on agribusiness, social media usage, entrepreneurial skills development and sexual reproductive health and rights.
GNA
