Monitoring your health risks will give you longer life, save cost

Many of us are ignorant of our health status and possible health risks, which could undermine our longevity or become a problem for us in the future. And this put us at risk of huge financial cost as well as ill ridden adulthood, which ordinarily could have been avoided if we start early enough to monitors our health risks.

That is why experts say about 46 percent of adult Nigerians above the age of 25 have hypertension, and what’s even more startling is that only a third of people who have hypertension are aware they have the condition. And the incidence of diabetes is currently about 5 percent and is expected to double over the next decade, according to a WHO report.

Obi Igbokwe, preventive Medical Advocate and founder WellNewMe, a wellness solution Company said it has come up with health monitor Apps that enables individuals monitor and get advisory on their healths.

Igbokwe said it’s also a very important tool that would help organisations understudy the health risks of their employees for better productivity, manpower efficiency and human resource management.

This IT driven platform he noted is vital for successful and efficient management of Health Management Organisation (HMO) clients as well as customers of life insurance companies.

WellNewMe.com, Igbokwe further stated was formed in partnership with Enterprise Trust Insurance Brokers Ltd, and aims to make individuals more aware of their health risks based on the decisions they are making today. It is hard to get people to make changes to habits that they have carried out for years, which is why a lot of work is being done to make the platform as engaging as possible to build a long term relationship with our user based and invariably guide them towards making those changes a little bit at a time.

“WellNewMe is designed to be personalized for each user based on their health risks and goals. We believe this is a much better approach as it is likely to increase engagement and yield more results, especially when it comes to our corporate clients.”

Igbokwe stressed that said workplaces have been fingered as a major contributory factor to the increase in these conditions as many workplaces are now sedentary settings and often provide easy access to energy-dense food and beverages. 

“In other words, it is a conscious effort by employers to improve the health of all its employees whether through health fairs, health education, medical screenings, healthy office snack delivery services, health coaching, weight management programs, wellness newsletters, on-site fitness programs and/or facilities and educational programs.”

Management at WellNewMe strongly believe that employers by implementing population-based programmes including health risk appraisals and health screenings in combination with goal-oriented interventions will invariably be contributing towards building a healthier society.

Paschael Egerue, managing director/CEO, Enterprise Trust Insurance Brokers Limited partners in the project stated that the his company said the potential of this programme to help underwriting companies involved in life business bridge the gap associated with customers medical text.

Ordinarily most insurance customers avoid being subjected to medical test as precondition for being given life cover, stating that with this platform many customers will find its more comfortable offering themselves for risk assessment.

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