Story by Lilian Owusu-Mensah
The Chief Programmes Officer, Medical and Dental at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Baffour Awuah has stated that Non-Communicable diseases can best be described as silent killers, and everybody is at risk.
He said this is because these are diseases that do not really show anything or give warning signs to their patients. The only time it will be felt is when they have started causing damage to the body.
“Noncommunicable diseases in some quarters are described as silent killers. This is because when they are developing initially you don’t feel anything in the body. By the time you feel something in the body, it has become entrenched, so that is the sad part of the condition, and this makes it scary “, he stated.
Dr. Awuah made this point on the GTV Breakfast Show while discussing the topic “Reducing Non-Communicable Diseases “with host Kafui Dey on the health check segment.
The doctor disclosed that there is a need for a periodic health check to curb or save situations before they go bad.
“That’s why we are mounting this advocacy that you don’t need to feel something in the body before you go to a hospital. Periodically everybody from time to time should go to a health facility and get a health check. The common things that we can check, your blood pressure, your blood sugar, they will check your weight and height and do what we call body max index, and then take blood, your urine to check whether they are normal” he added.
In response to why Ghanaians do not often go for checkups, the doctor said, it is because of ignorance and lack of education. Another reason is stigma and advised all, especially adults to undergo periodic health checks as a preventive measure.
“I would say, one ignorance and lack of education. And then there are times when stigma…That’s why we are saying that for every adult, it should become a routine that from time to time you should go check your health status and this is dependent on your risk profile”, he stated.
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