By: Siphiwe Ngcongco
Last Thursday, the Department of Health in the Northern Cape hosted a “Move for Health and Human Papilloma virus” mass mobilisation campaign in Roodepan, Kimberley, to advocate for healthy lifestyles in society.
The Roodepan community came out in numbers, from young to old and eagerly participated in aerobics exercises to kick-start the program. Maruping Lekwene, the MEC or Health and Kimberley mayor Kagiso Sonyoni and health personnel also engaged in the activities.
The department of Health brought mobile clinic services for community members to test for high-blood pressure and cervical cancer including, vaccination stands for children.
Lekwene said community members must pursue healthy lifestyles to avoid unwanted illnesses. He motivated people to vaccinate against deadly viruses which are spreading in communities, pointing out that they affect the frail immune systems of underage children.
“You should avoid unhealthy habits, excessive salt, too much sugar and extreme usage of fats. As they can have serious consequences like diabetes, hypertension and different cancers”, he said.
Sonyoni encouraged the youth to stop substance abuse because of its adverse health effects, such as namely; the increased strain on the liver, mental confusion and lung disease. He further said that drug addiction destroyed society by increasing criminal activities in communities.
“The core message is that a healthy diet, a tobacco and alcohol-free lifestyle are cheap ways to prevent diseases and improve your health. It is a cost-effective and affordable health tool with great potential”, he said.
Luzanne Lukas, a community member, said he was pleased with the mobile health services brought to Roodepan “since it is a struggle to go to the clinic or hospital.
I appreciate the department’s community outreach programme”, he said, “as much we are motivated to eat healthy foods not all of us can afford that luxury – we eat what we can afford”.
Lekwene said they were currently busy with plans to make the Galeshewe Day Hospital to operate on a 24/7 basis by the end of April this year. This follows a departmental strategy to relieve pressure at Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe Hospital. They also intend to open a district hospital in Kimberley.
“We are looking at the Harmony Home facility. We will start with 50 beds and run the institution as a district hospital. Also, we are waiting for 50 ambulances to help ease the pressure. We are also busy with professional nurse recruitment plans to improve service delivery”.
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