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The Member of Parliament for Buem in the Oti region, Kofi Adams has ended a three-day deworming exercise for his constituents, with a call to them to make their health a priority.
The initiative held from November 12 to 14, 2021, and forms part of the MP’s social intervention programme, was done in partnership with the Jasikan District Health Directorate and Ghanaian-owned pharmaceutical giant, Dannex-Aryton-Starwin (DAS) PLC.
This is the first time Mr Adams has undertaken such an exercise in his constituency aside from other projects he has spearheaded.
“I must say that, it makes me very happy to be doing this for my constituents in addition to the numerous educational interventions and health related activities I have undertaken in the constituency like eye screening and surgeries,’’ Mr Adams said.
Mr Adams further said that he was very much aware of the benefits of deworming every three months and the consequences of defaulting.
“I just did not want to leave my people behind in terms of health care, so I decided to write to DAS, and Tobinco requesting that they team up with me and provide me the dewormers and here we are today. Even though we consider that tablet as being very cheap, not everyone can afford it and as long as I remain MP, the little fund I get in terms of social intervention, I will set aside some for programmes like these to support those who are unable to buy a dewormer’’.
Beneficiaries
More than 11,000 people benefitted from phase one of the free distribution of tablets for soil-transmitted helminthiasis (worms infestation). They included children from the age of two, the elderly and students in all second cycle schools in the Jasikan district.
Residents in communities like Okadjakrom, Hausa Zongo, Kotokoli Zongo, Baglo, New Ayoma, Teteman (hometown of the MP), and Bodada were also administered the free deworming tablets.
The Chief Imam of Kotokoli Zongo (one of the beneficiary communities), and Chief of Teteman, Nana Oware Owusu the fifth, commended Dannex-Aryton-Starwin for the gesture and appealed to the MP to ensure the exercise is sustained.
‘’We are not oblivious of the enormous benefits of taking a dewormer every three months as advised by medical professionals. We know that this will greatly impact our health, so if this exercise continues, it will give us so much joy’’.
Addressing the media, the Marketing manager of DAS PLC, Kwame Ampong Asomaning said, ‘the deworming campaign is a flagship programme of DAS PLC and our mantra is ‘’CARING FOR LIFE. Deworming people is a manifestation of what we preach which is caring for life. So, if there is an opportunity to return to Buem in the three or six months to continue what we started, we will’’.
For his part, the Acting Director of Health Services, Jasikan District, Isaac Annobil said the exercise could not have come at a better time.
‘’When you look at the list of our top 10 diseases as a district, worm infestation falls within that category. Having such an intervention, coming from the MP and DAS is really encouraging, so we mobilized 46 health workers from the different communities to assist with the exercise’’.
The Jasikan District Health directorate provided technical support and education on how the drug should be administered while Dannex-Aryton-Starwin supported with its Menazole dewormer brand.
According to the World Health Organisation, approximately 1.5 billion people worldwide are infected with soil-transmitted helminths. They are transmitted by eggs present in human faeces, which contaminate the soil in areas where sanitation is poor. The effects of worm infestation may include dysentery, itching and malnutrition especially in children.
