COVID-19: Red Cross charges Lagos residents on personal hygiene, hand washing

Mon, Mar 16, 2020
By publisher
3 MIN READ

Health

OLAKUNLE Lasisi, Secretary of Nigeria Red Cross, Lagos chapter, has advised residents to maintain personal and environment and hygiene as well as embrace regular hand washing to prevent coronavirus and other diseases.

He gave the advice on Monday at the Shasha community medical outreach organised by Lagos Caledonian Society and Magna Carta Health in collaboration with the Nigerian Red Cross Society (NRCS).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that over 300 residents of Shasha community benefited from blood pressure test, blood sugar checkup, free drugs, eye screening, free eye glasses, tuberculosis test, family planning and personal hygiene kits.

Lasisi said that maintaining clean personal and environment hygiene would promote healthy lifestyle and improve behavioural attitude to healthcare.

“This is the second edition of this programme which we started with Makoko community and our intention is to visit all the communities in Lagos.

“Our aim is for all communities to benefit from any form of medical screening and provision of drugs,’’ Lasisi said.

He commended the Lagos State Government for providing primary healthcare service in many communities in the state.

“Both federal and state governments are doing good job on the coronavirus by their rapid response to those that were tested positive and getting all the contact tracing.

“Red Cross is auxiliary to public authority that is why we are involved in health matters so we support the ministry of health at the state and federal levels.

“Over 80,000 of our members and volunteers are on the streets of Lagos to educate people on how to prevent the virus and encourage people to share their travel history,” Lasisi said.

Similarly, Dr Blessing Logan, Medical officer, Magna Carta Health Clinic, Ikoyi, said that the medical outreach was so timely as would help us to educate people on measures and prevention of coronavirus.

Logan said that they educated the people on how to practice good personal hygiene, healthy lifestyle, wash their hands regularly because prevention was better than cure.

“We have affected over 2000 people positively since we started the community medical outreach.

“We always organise medical outreaches for the people living in the communities and this year we are starting with Shasha community.

“Due to the population in Shasha community, we decided to provide free medical screening and borehole which will provide water to the people,’’ she said.

Also, Mrs Alana Macgillivray, Vice Chieftain, Lagos Caledonian Society, called on community leaders to work with government on how they could improve level of hygiene in the country.

Macgillivray said that there was need for people living in the communities to understand the importance of cleanliness and hygiene within their environment.

“Our society raised some funds to provide everyone with hygiene bags, donated clothes and borehole water.

“We went to Makoko community six months ago and we decided impacting and touch people living far away from centre of Lagos

“Concerning the outbreak of Coronavirus, Nigeria is a fortunate country for curtailing the spread of the virus despite its prevailent poverty,” she said.

Earlier, Babtunde Ogunronbi, Traditional Ruler of Shasha Kingdom, Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State, expressed appreciation to the organisers of the medical outreach for providing health screening and water borehole for the community.

Ogunronbi said that medical outreach was a huge opportunity for the people because some of them could not afford regular medical checkup.

One of the participants, Mr Ibrahim Adesoye, said he received adequate medications for malaria treatment and free eyeglasses which would help him read better.

Adesoye urged more health organisations to organise medical outreaches for the people in the community. (NAN)

– Mar. 16, 2020 @ 19:35 GMT |

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