In order for the nation to attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), participants in a roundtable have asked the government and other stakeholders to take action to severely combat chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
This, they claimed, was due to the fact that NCDs, as a public health concern, might, if not addressed, have a negative impact on other SDGs due to the loss of human capital and rising health care costs.
Yesterday, they spoke at Ghana's inaugural annual national dialogue for action on chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
The conference's subject was "Exploring the Synergy between Noncommunicable Diseases and SDGs," and it was put on by the University of Ghana Hub and the ARUA Centre of Excellence for Noncommunicable Disorders.
Strong sensitivity
Dr. Olivia Boateng, Director of the FDA's Tobacco and Substance Abuse Division, spoke on the panel and emphasized the necessity of a group effort to intensify public awareness of NCDs as a preventative tool.
She asked the administration to show political commitment in the battle against NCDs and supported her arguments by pointing to the country's reaction to the COVID-19 epidemic.
"I believe the best course of action is what we as a country did with COVID when all hands were on deck to educate everyone on the safety measures and get the public's attention".
I believe that we should approach the NCD debate using the same dimensions that we used to move everyone forward during the COVID," she said.
Dr. William Bosu, a medical epidemiologist at the West Africa Health Organization (WAHO), remarked that despite the fact that recent data and indicators showed encouraging trends, more needed to be done to reduce NCD risk factors.
Thus, he asked the government to take deliberate and active action to create a fund specifically for NCDs to make money easily available to address NCD-related concerns.
As it had been done with HIV/AIDS and malaria, among other things, Dr. Bosu also recommended the creation of a national initiative on NCDs as a way to prioritize non-communicable illnesses in national health discussions.
Governmental reaction
Dr. Felix Addo-Yobo, a member of the SDG Advisory Unit in the President's office, said that the government was taking the necessary steps to address the effects of NCDs on the SDGs and the nation as a whole.
The national policy on NCDs has been revised by the government in response, he said, "taking into account the consequences of the COVID and other challenges." It contains the accompanying plan for the prevention and control of NCDs.
blogpay
Total Comments: 0