Nurses, Community Mobilizers Team Up to Fight NCDs!
Community Mobilizers and Nurses from the Non-Communicable Diseases, Prevention and Control Program (NCD-PCP) Departments across CBC Health Services facilities have been equipped in a two-day workshop, held at the Baptist Centre in Bamenda from April 4 to 5 2024.
During the workshop, which focused on equipping participants with the knowledge to empower their communities to adopt healthier lifestyles and prevent NCDs, the NCD-PCP Program Manager, Mr. Takwe Boniface called for collaboration between the Nurses and Community Mobilizers in the prevention and control of NCDs.
Mr. Takwe presented an overview of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), highlighting that they are responsible for 74% of global deaths. His presentation covered the program’s goals and objectives, along with the five major NCD risk factors (both modifiable and non-modifiable) and the five main NCD groups. He also emphasized the importance of preventive measures.
Key training topics included management of Hypertension and Diabetes during which participants were equipped with the knowledge and skills to manage the prevalent NCDs. The crucial role of Community Mobilizers was expatiated upon highlighting the vital role they play in effective healthcare delivery at the community level. Another important topic was Assessing Lifestyle Risks. Participants learned to assess risk factors associated with unhealthy behaviors, including alcohol and tobacco use.
The training also covered measuring essential health indicators such as height, weight, Body Mass Index (BMI), blood sugar (BS), blood pressure (BP), and waist circumference (WC). Additionally, it addressed equipment calibration and identification of faulty equipment.
To ensure comprehensive NCD management, the training encompassed various themes like compiling lifestyle risk assessments, exercise prescriptions, nutrition counseling, and work planning. It also emphasized the significance of timely reporting and effective behavior change communication. Given the challenges encountered in filling up the registers, facilitators took out time to explain chronologically how to fill up the registers with patient information for easy reporting. The Nurses were made to understand clearly what it takes to run the Know Your Number Units at the hospitals. Group gatherings, Interactions, a hands-on session on how to measure the numbers, and Question and Answer sessions characterized the two-day workshop.
The workshop benefitted from the expertise of Mr. Fanfon Timothy, Dr. Ngafi Napoleon, Kpeya Queen, Monju Elvis, and other facilitators who covered a range of topics. Participants were called upon to make use of the knowledge gained as they went back to their stations.cc
According to the program Manager, Mr. Takwe Boniface, so much is going to change in the days ahead because it is the first time community mobilizers were taking part in the NCD training and will hence assist the nurses to do awareness creation in the communities, especially during those difficult moments when it is hard for them to reach the communities. The expectation is that turnout in the difficult facilities will improve compared to before since efforts will be made not just at the facility level but also in the communities.