Okyeame Kwame
Preparations are ongoing to host this year’s edition of the free Hepatitis B screening campaign for 10,000 people at Kasoa and Koforidua, hiplife artiste Okyeame Kwame has disclosed.
This year’s campaign which is under the theme ‘Let’s Kick Hepatitis Out’ will take place on July 28-29 to mark the World Hepatitis Day celebration.
According to Okyeame Kwame, this year’s screening exercise is being organised by the Okyeame Kwame Foundation (OKF), with support from MDS-Lancet Laboratory, among other allied bodies. The screening exercise is an annual event which aims at helping kick hepatitis B out of the country.
He mentioned that a number of artistes have been invited to perform after the screening exercise to entertain all those who will participate in the exercise.
Speaking in an interview, OKF Project Coordinator Annica Nsiah Appau said the free Hepatitis B screening is targeting over 10,000 people, which would signify a marked improvement over the number of people the foundation screened last year.
She said the primary focus of the foundation is to raise awareness and educate the public about Hepatitis B, a viral infection which infects the liver and causes an inflammation.
Mrs Nsiah Appau mentioned that negotiations are currently ongoing with the mayor of Cincinnati to support the foundation to host the Hepatitis B free screening in one of the West African countries in September this year.
She also appealed to all corporate bodies and other non-governmental organisations to help in the fight against Hepatitis B by sponsoring the free screening exercise.
Last year, the Okyeame Kwame Foundation organised a free Hepatitis B campaign, including education and screenings in Ho in the Volta Region.
By George Clifford Owusu