About 1,000 traders at Igbona Market in Osogbo, Osun State, and residents of the area have been screened for hypertension and Body Mass Index during a medical outreach organised by the Femi Olutoye Foundation.
The outreach, held at the market, was part of activities marking the second anniversary of the foundation.
The coordinator of the exercise, Kareemat Jolayemi, a nurse and lecturer at Adeleke University, Ede, Osun State, on Friday, expressed concern over the poor adherence to prescribed medication among some of those screened for hypertension.
She also said a number of those screened for BMI were overweight, a condition that could increase their risk of developing non-communicable diseases.
Jolayemi said, “We screened about 1,000 market women and others during this outreach sponsored by Femi Olutoye Foundation. It has been in existence for two years, and the founder developed the passion since he was an undergraduate student.
“We screened these market women and others that came around for blood pressure and checked their Body Mass Index to know their nutritional status.
“Hypertension is now a pandemic, and this is a result of high blood pressure, which is why we are here today.
“We want people to know that hypertension is real and can lead to death, and also to let them know the ways it can be prevented. The first thing we did here today was sensitisation. We sensitised them about the causes and how it can be prevented.”
Speaking further about the findings from the screening, Jolayemi said some of those who disclosed that they had previously been placed on medication for hypertension were not taking their drugs as prescribed.
She said, “Many of those we screened for hypertension have been on medications, going by what they told the team, but they have not been taking their medications as and when due.
“We counselled them on the need to take their medication as and when due. We also told them about the right nutrition they should be taking to be healthy.”
A market leader, Shakirat Ajibola, commended the foundation for organising the outreach, saying it had provided traders who might not have regular access to medical check-ups with an opportunity to assess their health status.
She said, “This initiative is a good one, and a lot of our traders have benefited from the free medical outreach.
“I want to urge my fellow traders that, apart from this free medical outreach, they should also make it a duty to visit the hospital occasionally to check their health status.”
The Femi Olutoye Foundation has also organised an awareness and prevention campaign on cervical cancer for selected women in Osun State.
The campaign was organised as part of activities marking this year’s International Women’s Day, an annual event observed on March 8.
At the women’s health outreach held in Iragbiji, Osun State, participants were sensitised on the importance of early detection of cervical cancer and the need for women to undergo screening to reduce preventable deaths.
The lead facilitator of the programme and a nursing lecturer at Adeleke University, Karimat Jolayemi, called for stronger collaboration among individuals, groups and government to make cervical cancer screening equipment more available to women and reduce mortality associated with the disease.
