NGOs sensitise students on sickle cell

As part of activities to mark this year’s Sickle Cell Day, a NonGovernmental Organisation, Eyum Sickle Cell Anemia Foundation (ESCAF), in collaboration with Sickle Cell Support, and Centre for School Healthy Environmental Education and Hygiene, has organised a sensitisation campaign for students of secondary schools in Abuja.
The event, the organisers said is aimed at creating awareness about sickle cell disorder, its prevention and management for senior secondary school students and residents of the territory. Speaking to journalists in Abuja, ESCAF Founder, Audu Sandra Eyum, said this year’s programme “is targeted at promoting awareness of sickle cell disorder; educating students on prevention and management of sickle cell anemia and encourage warriors (sicklers) to have positive attitude to life as well as create database for information management and sharing.” She, however, lamented the high cost of the treatment and management of sickle cell, just as she stressed the importance of counselling in the management of the disease.
According to him, the best cure for now is to avoid carriers getting married hence counselling is one of the major steps by the Foundation to reachout to people.
In her remarks, the guest speaker and Deputy Director in the Private Health Establishment Regulatory Committee, FCTA Health Secretariat, Mrs. Nkechi Ezeudu, identified also harped on the need for increased awareness on sickle cell disorder.
Ezeudu told participants that faith in God and awareness remain the best option for management and prevention of sickle cell, stressing that the best treatment of the disease is nutrition integrated with faith.
She also noted that if the hematopoietic stem cell transplantation could be sustained, “it will go a long way of bringing succour to carriers of sickle cell disease, just as she commended the recent agreement between the ministry of health and May & Baker for the production, development of regulatory guidelines for the assessment and registration of phytomedicines in Nigeria.” United Nations has designated June 19, every year, as World Sickle Cell Awareness Day.