A scene from the exercise
Golden Exotics, producers and exporters of banana has partnered with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, to organize a free health screening exercise for residents of Shia Osudoku in the Greater Accra Region.
The exercise is under the COVID 19: Comprehensive Pandemic Management for Employees, Families and Communities project funded through the GIZ-implemented develoPPP programme on behalf of the German Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
It aims to strengthen the country’s health system by supporting the government in accessing real time data delivered by systems such as the “Surveillance, Outbreak Response Management and Analysis System (SORMAS) regarding availability of health workers, outbreak and disease evolution, availability of supplies and consumables.
The exercise which saw both young and old residents gather at the Pentecost Central Assembly to assess their health status, covered non communicable diseases like hypertension, diabetes, malaria, and upper respiratory tract infections. Those who opted for could also test for HIV/AIDS and vaccinate against covid-19.
Some beneficiaries were given referrals for further testing and follow-up care at the Shai Osudoku Health centre, while others were asked to go for counseling on high blood pressure and their diet.
District Director of Health Services for Shai Osudoku, Rev. Ebenezer Asiamah, said the screening is a first point of call to pick up conditions that otherwise might be hiding because of poor health seeking behavior of the people which he attributed to poverty and often lack of the NHIS card.
“This is a very brilliant exercise that would save lives if we could do periodically because I know there are people who stay at home, go into shock or show deteriorating conditions before they are rushed to the hospitals. If we could get funding, we should do it periodically to help the people,” he stated.
Rev. Asiamah, opined the importance of early detection to improve outcomes saying the we pick up on a condition, we can counsel the patient around diet and lifestyle. Once the diet is modified and the lifestyle is changed, the person will be able to reverse the condition unless it is far advanced”.
Assistant Manager for Sustainability and Communications at Golden Exotics, Lilian Yvonne Karikari, said the company partnered GIZ to ensure the health resilience of its workforce and our operating community.
“This way, we are ensuring business continuity and readiness for future pandemics,” she said.
Under the Pandemic Management project, Golden Exotics together with other private partners are helping to ensure that healthcare systems within catchment communities are strengthened through preventive health activities and social and behavioral change communication.
It is also expected that companies would enhance workplace safety policies, improve employee benefits and insurance and increase awareness and education on occupational health and safety standards and protocols.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri