Cardiac Community, a non-governmental organisation committed to fighting cardiovascular diseases in Nigeria in collaboration with Novartis, one of the largest pharmaceutical company in the world has called for increased attention to hypertension.
Under a campaign, “Wetin be your number?” the group screened people, provided awareness and education on the importance of regular blood pressure screening.
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The campaign held in 5 locations in Lagos and Ogun State, with over 700 Individuals screened. Awareness measures and education were provided on the ways to prevent and manage high blood pressure.
During one of the screening exercises, Jide Owolabi, co-founder, Cardiac Community, stressed on the importance of regular blood pressure checks. He said, “Hypertension is the leading cause of preventable death worldwide, killing more than 10 million individuals every year and only half of those with hypertension are aware they have it.
It usually has no symptoms, which is why it is called the silent killer. You may not know you have it until you get tested. The test is easy, painless and fast. We were able to correct the misconceptions some participants had towards getting screened and encouraged them to get tested. Hypertension is a major health threat to the world at large and Nigeria. We are happy we can help in our little way to reduce the burden of hypertension in our society by creating the necessary awareness and providing free screening to individuals. New hypertensive cases discovered were referred to health centers within their proximity”.
Cardiac dietitian, Sari Nutrition was present at some of the screening locations to give nutritional advice to participants.
The initiative was also supported by the Lagos Internal Revenue Service (LIRS).
