UPPER EAST MINISTER CALLS FOR PUBLIC EDUCATION ON MENINGITIS
The Upper East Regional Minister, Hon. Stephen Yakubu has encouraged health facilities across the region to intensify public education on meningitis to avert any outbreak during the heat season.
“Let us lead the communication to raise awareness, promote, prevent and ensure timely treatment of meningitis in this heat period,” he said.
The Regional Minister said this at the 2023 Annual Performance Review meeting of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) in Bolgatanga.
He advised residents to sleep in well-ventilated rooms and drink a lot of fluids during the day to stay hydrated.
He used the occasion to express gratitude to health workers at the Bawku Presbyterian Hospital, who he said despite the incessant communal violence, persisted and put their life on the line to provide healthcare to patients.
Hon. Yakubu said government was working with some stakeholders behind the scene to normalize the security situation in Bawku and its environs to ensure that the facility resumed full operations to ease pressure on the regional hospital.
“The Bawku situation has been a source of worry to all, and I want to use this opportunity to commend those of you who continuously provide healthcare services to the people in spite of all risks,” he said.
He announced that about 30,000 doses of vaccines were procured to do pre- vaccination against anthrax disease that rocked the region last year, and called for a collaboration among stakeholders.
Addressing the meeting, Dr. Samuel K. Boakye- Boateng, the Regional Health Director, termed the prevailing diseases in the country as “triple burden”.
He described the continued presence of infectious disease as diseases of lack, the increasing occurrence of lifestyle disease seen as diabetes and hypertension and increasing burden of disease associated with micronutrients deficiency.
Dr. Boakye-Boateng said young and productive persons had died from complications as a result of this “triple burden” of disease.
He said hypertension and diabetes were on the rise and yet, were not detected early enough for treatment.
“Therefore, the Service is implementing interventions such as a Wellness Clinics and Life Course Approach to home visits so that these lifestyle diseases will either be prevented or picked up early to prevent the development of complications,” he said.
