The Nakuru County government has partnered with a Danish multinational drug company, Novo Nordisk, to undertake a one week diabetes and hypertension screening exercise at the Nakuru Level five hospital.
The exercise is expected to climax on Saturday when the world marks the annual diabetes day.
Health workers have urged members of the public to take advantage of the free screening to establish their status and especially in view of the growing challenge occasioned by the Covid – 19 pandemic.
Diabetes and hypertension have been identified as a major challenge in the fight against Covid 19 as they are more likely to get more severe symptoms and complications. In view of this, such patients need to have their conditions managed well and monitored regularly.
A nursing officer at the Diabetes centre of excellence Ms Gladys Chesire urged Nakuru residents to take advantage of the exercise to find out their status so that those who have the diseases can be managed properly.
She asked residents to avoid consumption of refined foods and encouraged them to revert to the traditional foods known for their high fibre content.
She also urged residents to undertake regular exercises and also check on their weight saying that it could trigger the two conditions.
The exercise targets to screen over 3,000 people by Saturday this week when the World Diabetes Day will be observed.
This year’s campaign focuses on promoting the role of nurses in the prevention and management of Diabetes with calls for more nursing staff to be recruited to handle the increasing number of diabetic cases worldwide.
Nakuru County department of health has already established a Diabetes Centre of Excellence at the Nakuru level five facility that handles over 1,000 diabetic patients per month.
The County has also trained over 500 healthcare workers on diabetes screening and management.
Satellite diabetes clinics have been opened in selected Level 3 and 4 hospitals across the County.
By Jane Ngugi
