Trends of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in Accra is fast increasing, with cardiovascular diseases being the leading cause of death among the middle-aged in the City.
Dr Abena Okoh, Metropolitan Director of Health Service, said the high numbers of NCDs; hypertension, stroke cancers and diabetes, were contributing to the numerous “Gone too soon” and “What a Shock” funeral posters of persons 40 years and below seen in the streets of Accra.
She said urbanisation, unhealthy lifestyle such high intake of salt, sugar, high intake of saturated and trans-fat, smoking, harmful use of alcohol and physical inactivity are causes for national concern.
She told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview during the Partnership for Healthy City (PHC) Summit in Cape Town that diabetes diagnoses, which used to be low was now part of the top ten Out Patient Department (OPD) diagnoses in health facilities in Accra.
“You will realise that at first when you visit the wards, people on admissions due to hypertension, stroke and diabetes were gray haired men and women, but now you get to see young people between the ages of 30 to 45 on admission for NCDs,” she said.
In Accra, data from the District Health Information Management System (DHIMS) indicate that top ten Out Patient Department (OPD) diagnoses in Accra from one to 10 over the last three years, 2021 to 2023 are Upper Respiratory Tract Infections, Malaria, Acute Urinary Tract Infection.
The rest are Hypertension, Anemia, Rheumatism or other joint pains, Diarrhoea Diseases, Typhoid Fever, Skin Diseases and Pregnancy Complications.
Dr Okoh said hypertension was the fifth cause of illness and deaths in Accra; from 2021 to 2023, a total 38,826 hypertension cases were recorded in health facilities in Accra, 12,451 in 2021, 12,671 in 2022 and 13,704 in 2023.
She said Accra was a city with about two million transit population on a daily basis, with a lot of air pollution and low physical activities.
She said the Metropolitan Health Directorate in its bid to control the high numbers of NCD had started running mobile wellness clinics.
“The mobile clinics move into communities like James town, Chorkor, T gardens, Kaneshie and markets in the city to screen people and offer free education on NCDs and counseling on how to live healthy,” she said.
Dr Okoh said during the wellness clinics about 50 people were screen for blood pressure and sugar, body weight, height per session and those who needed specific care were linked to health facilities.
Patients at the Out Patient Department, in hospitals in the City, are also educated on NCDs during routine visits.
She said the Directorate was partnering with the Education Directorate to ensure that school children took a healthy meal or fruit to school under its one healthy snack a day initiative within the next quarter.
She called on partners to support the City’s effort to control the high numbers of NCDs in the country.
Dr Okoh thanked the Partnership for Healthy Cities Network for its support to the City on road safety over the last eight years and called for more assistance to create awareness and reduce NCDs in Accra.
Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs), also known as chronic diseases, tend to be of long duration and are the result of a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioral factors.
Many deaths from NCDs are preventable, if communities and policymakers implement the right policies and strategies.
The World Health Organisation recommends an effective communication and outreach on NCDs, including a dialogue that connects with people’s own experiences on NCDs.
GNA
