By: Precious Mills
(Monday 24th October 2022) – Dr. Oghenerukevwe Odjimogho is advising individuals not to wait until they start feeling pain before doing a check-up.
“Don’t wait until you start feeling pain before you check yourself because many times when you start feeling pain in your body, some things might have gone wrong quickly.”
This reporter recently spoke with the medial practitioner of Windsor University School of Medicine on Saturday 15th October 2022 during a community service outreach health screening event in partnership with Cradles Learning Centre conducted at the center’s premises at Wigley Avenue in Basseterre.
He explained that from time to time, the university would collaborate with patrons, companies, schools and other organizations in St.Kitts to offer free health screenings.
Services that day included blood pressure check, GMR (Glucose Metabolic Rate), body mass index to check as well as electrocardiography with a portable ECG device used to monitor to check the state and functioning of the heart.
“…and then this, is breast cancer month. We also have a breast cancer screening unit. So that’s pretty much what we do and it’s free and it’s, just a way of giving back to St. Kitts and Nevis,” Dr. Odjimogho stated.
He commended the management of Cradles Learning Centre for doing an excellent job in terms of reaching out to the community noting “and the response since we started, even before we opened the site today, there were already persons waiting. And it has been very good. It’s very good.”
Husband and wife team Beverly ‘Teacher Bev’ and Lester Ible of Cradles Learning Centre have shared the reason for putting on the health outreach which stems from their contribution in encouraging individuals to see about their wellness which includes early detection.
The breast cancer screening service was key feature for Teacher Beverly who is passionate about the topic of breast cancer awareness, having lost her mother Bernadette Fyfield-Benjamin to the disease on 25th October 2017, and therefore has a care concern for others.
Questioned about the gender ratio, at that day’s health screening, Dr. Odjimogho replied: “Well, I would give it to the women. The ladies have shown greater response than the men. I would almost say for like every 20 persons that we see, at least 15 of them are ladies and then the five are men. So, and I guess probably because again, because many of them who come about 90 to 95% of, in fact about a hundred percent of them who come, always go to the breast cancer screening unit. So, I guess that’s the reason why we have a greater number of females.”
At the time of the interview, he informed that 30 to 50 persons had been seen, ages 25 to 60.
He added “…but it’s more on the younger side. If you are very conscious of your health at an early age, that’s very good for you, yes.” Asked what message he has in general for the public, he replied: “Health is wealth. That’s the summary. There is a saying that you don’t know how much you need something until you lose it and when it comes to health, that is not the right way to go. Every time we see it, even today we have seen there are some people who come and physically they look good until they do some screenings and they’re even shocked to find out.”
Dr. Odjimogho continued: “We have seen, even in this short period that we’re here, we have seen glucose levels of over 300… Should be less than hundred if the patient has not eaten and just a little above hundred if the patient has eaten. I mean there are crazy figures we have seen here today and we talk to them, we encourage them, some of them, we ask them to go to the hospital quickly and get themselves checked.”
He stressed on the importance of regular check-ups saying: “So, it’s very important; Don’t, don’t wait until you start feeling pain before you check yourself. Because many times when you start feeling pain in your body, some things might have gone wrong quickly. So, I mean, it doesn’t hurt to know your blood pressure, it doesn’t hurt to know your sugar, it doesn’t hurt to know these things whether or not you are at risk for these things or not. Some persons, they have fathers [and] mothers who have it and so, they know that they’r at risk. There are some persons who don’t have it, but they still come down with these things. And then also because of the sedentary lifestyle and then the high level of junk food we have in the federation which many persons are accustomed to eating, it’s very important to check yourself. So, I want to encourage people, health is wealth. Don’t wait until you start feeling pain. Don’t wait until things go bad before you before you check these things? Yes.”
Front Page Photo: Dr. Oghenerukevwe Odjimogho of Windsor University School of Medicine (Spokesman Snap)
Photo: A look at the health screening activity conducted at Cradles Learning Centre on Saturday 15th October 2022 with students from Windsor University School of Medicine going about their duties. Dr. Oghenerukevwe Odjimogho (right) looks on. (Spokesman Snap)
