By Segun Ajayi

Lagos State has extended the blood pressure and diabetes screening by another one week. The second leg of the exercise ended on Sunday, 17 November 2024 but government reconsidered another extension owing to what the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi described as “overwhelming response” from the public, which made it clear that extending the campaign further would allow even more Lagosians to benefit from the lifesaving initiative. 

For four  weeks running, Lagos deployed men and materials to the field to tackle a dreaded twin health challenge to the young and elderly – hypertension and diabetes. The two ailments have been on the prowl since God knew when and, like the grim reaper, have continued to harvest lives in their prime. Like the thief in the night, hypertension cut short lives unannounced. It is called the silent killer because High BP (HBP) , as it is popularly known, is not written on people’s faces.

In their silent rage, hypertension and diabetes are sparing no one – old or young adult; a sad development that has given the state government serious cause for worry. There are scary reports of young people slumping behind the steeríng wheels, on the queues, and at social functions, of which medical investigations revealed the victim had the underlining sickness –  hypertension. The painful experiences drove the message home that HBP and diabetes could not be toyed with.  Inspired by an initiative of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and delivered through the Commissioners for Health Forum, the  state government’s propensity to prioritise the health of its residents and preventing chronic diseases through early diagnosis and effective health management again came to the fore. 

Flashback to 28 October 2024, free screening for HBP and diabetes was launched in Lagos and the target was to screen 10 million Nigerians. During the launch of the exercise, tagged  ‘Know Your Numbers, Control Your Numbers’, Abayomi disclosed that out of 30 million Lagos population, over eight million are living with blood pressure. He broke it down: Lagos with a population of 30 million has a prevalence rate of 30 per cent with the remaining 70 per centunaware they are  living with HBP, diabetes, and obesity. He added that diabetes has a six per cent prevalence rate, translating to 1.73 million residents, with 50 per cent unaware of their status.

For many people who still belittle hypertension and unmindful of its debilitating impact, the commissioner had this to say: “Hypertension is a leading cause of heart disease, stroke, and kidney failure. So, early detection and management of these conditions are vital to reducing the risk of serious complications”.

If such a staggering number of Lagosians lacked awareness of the dangerous sickness, it became compelling that government had to intensify the campaign. Aside that, the apathy shown by residents during the first leg of the exercise alarmed the officials, and tasked them to carry out more awareness. Government then extended the screening by two weeks (3-17 November) followed with another extension until Sunday, 24 November. So far, the state health managers deployed men and resources to over 330 designated centres comprising 30 General Hospitals and 300 Primary Health Centres across the state. 

Nigerians’ predilection to despise free services still characterised the early days, but the health officials were resilient. The same impression was given by the Special Adviser on Health to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Mrs. Oluwakemi Ogunyemi while on a Lagos-based TV station to spread the good news. “We were almost knocking on people’s doors, urging them to come out and get screened”, she said. She wondered why many Nigerians hardly priotíse their health conditions.

But for a serious government which places the welfare of the citizens as top priority, like that led by Sanwo-Olu, it louded the music until it echoed in the people’s ears. The intensity of the publicity eventually paid off as experienced by this writer who was a participant-observerat the Primary Health Centre, Ayobo-Ipaja Local Council Development Area, Igbogila, Ipaja during the extension period.

You arrived at the venue shielded from the sun within the expensive premises of the council and you’re warmly welcomed by the officials who immediately offered you a seat. In turns they took our vitals; height, weight, blood pressure and blood sugar. The results of the testshitherto recorded in a form completed by the visitors determined the next line of action. Some were referred to the physician owing to their high blood and sugar levels, even as others were advised to catty on with their medication.

The exercise that was fast and smooth. In 10 minutes, you were done. I saw the old and young adults come forward, which validated improved awareness among the citizens that it was not only the elderly who were menaced by HBP and diabetes. Twenty-two-year-old Cynthia Nwabani from Abia State, who resides in Lagos, commended the state government for making the screening exercise free. She acknowledged that many people keep away from checking their health statuses because of cost and wished the exercise was made routine. Based on the information she got, Cynthia promised to encourage her neighbours who were indifferent to the screening to seize the opportunity.

Madam Teresa Balogun, a 68-year old retiree from Osun State, knew about the screening through her daughter-in-law. She encouraged the old woman to visit the centre. Afterwards, Balogun was full of thanks to Sanwo-Olu and the state government for facilitating the exercise. She however, wished the government complemented the screening with relevant drugs. She was hypertensive and her blood sugar reading gave her cause for concern. “If not for my children who have been taking care of my health, how much is my pension”? she asked rhetorically. 

The just concluded blood pressure and diabetes screening was another success story of governor’s efforts at standardising health services in the state. A year ago, the state health management services centres were divided into six districts for effective management under a permanent secretary. According to the Special Adviser on Health, the strategy was to enable the officials a close study of the environment and detect the pressing health needs of the people with a view to addressing them.

Government has been revamping the existing primary health centres in the state, even as new ones are being built. With the resources of the state constantly overstretched, Sanwo-Olu has also been resilient in meeting the health needs of Lagosians in the three tiers of health facilities, Ogunyemi noted.