Amansie Central receives equipment for management of diabetes
Diabetes is usually a lifelong (chronic) disease in which there is a high level of sugar in the blood.
People with diabetes have high blood sugar because their body cannot move sugar into fat, liver and muscle cells to be stored for energy. It is either their pancreas does not make enough insulin, their cells do not respond to insulin normally or they have both of these conditions.
Symptoms and complications
High blood sugar level can cause several symptoms, including blurry vision, excess thirst, fatigue, hunger, urinating often and weight loss
After many years, diabetes can lead to other serious problems. These problems are known as diabetes complications and these include eye problems, including trouble seeing (especially at night), light sensitivity, blindness in the future, painful sores and infections of the leg or foot, which if left untreated, leads to removal of the foot or leg.
The disease can damage the nerves of the patient, and cause pain, tingling and a loss of feeling, problems with digesting food, erectile dysfunction, and kidney problems, which can lead to kidney failure and weakened immune system.
These in turn can lead to more frequent infections, as well as increased risk of having a heart attack or stroke.
Philanthropist
To help the Amansie Central District Health Management Team (DHMT) and the Saint Peter’s Hospital at Jacobu in the Ashanti Region to effectively manage complicated diabetes, a UK-based philanthropist, Dr Eric Owusu, has presented assorted medical equipment worth GH¢350,000 to the two facilities.
The items were made up of greasy syringe pumps, quantities of essential medications, blood pressure monitor and clinical thermometers among others.
The philanthropist, a diabetes specialist, who hails from the district, trained 70 health personnel comprising 40 from the DHMT and 30 from the St Peters Hospital, in the proper usage of the equipment.
The items are to support the diabetes management project being undertaken in the district to help ensure that diabetes cases in the district are reduced.
Reported cases
The district recorded 665 cases of diabetes in 2012 and 225 in 2013 respectively.
Dr Owusu lamented the spate of reported cases of the disease in the area, and the nation in general, saying the illness was among the most common causes of deaths.
The District Director of Health Services, Mr Timothy Twumasi Mensah, appealed to the government to repair a collapsed bridge over River Aworoh at Atobiase, which had affected the smooth movement of both health personnel and patients to the health centre.
The Member of Parliament for Amansie Central, Mr Emmanuel Akwasi Gyamfi, commended the medical doctor for the gesture and urged other natives resident abroad to emulate the gesture.
