The exercise, dubbed “Worm-free child Project”, took place at the Adabraka Methodist School Park.

The foundation organised the screening in collaboration with traditional authorities, schools, healthcare providers and corporate organisations.
Over 500 pupils from various schools within Adrabraka benefitted from the exercise.

As part of awareness creation on deworming, children aged two years and above were administered drugs and further screened for various ailments by health professionals from the Paediatric Society of Ghana.

With the support of a host of sponsors and partners, the beneficiaries were also presented with various items, including soft drinks and clothes.

Sanitation

The Chief Executive of the foundation, Abigail Kontoh, told the Daily Graphic that insanitary practices, especially in Accra, had necessitated the creation of awareness of the devastating effect of worm infestation.

With the township’s proximity to the Odaw River, a direly polluted water body in Adabraka, Mrs Kontoh expressed worry at the high risk of worm infestation among children within that area.

She further advised parents to be circumspect in catering for their children’s health care and sanitation needs since they were prone to harmful practices, exposing them to serious health complications.

“You need to deworm your children, at least twice a year. Beyond that, let’s keep to the practices. Make sure your surroundings are clean and keep to the hand washing,” she emphasised.

She also expressed appreciation to the stakeholders, partners and sponsors for their respective input and timely effort in making the exercise a success.

A Paediatric Resident at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and a member of the Paediatric Society of Ghana, Dr Nelly Adade, bemoaned the lack of attention given to worm infestation in the country.

She added that both parents and children should be educated more on healthy acts such as hand hygiene and thorough washing of edibles to help curb the prevalent incidence of worm infestation.

“We need to practice hand hygiene. We need to ensure that things we eat are well prepared. We need to make sure fruits are well washed before we eat them,” she stated.

Gratitude

The queenmother of Adabraka, Naa Korkor Aadzieoyi I, who could not hide her joy at the turnout despite the downpour, said the exercise had been fruitful, much to her delight.

Speaking to the Daily Graphic, the queenmother noted that the need to deworm could not be underestimated and that was why she petitioned the foundation to come to the aid of the children within her jurisdiction.

The queenmother encouraged guardians and parents of children to adhere to the World Health Organisation’s guidelines to deworm every six months to prevent worm infestations.