15 Nov 2017

The World Diabetes Day 2017 campaign  promotes the importance of affordable and equitable access for all women with diabetes, self-management education and information they require to achieve optimal diabetes outcomes and strengthen their capacity to prevent diabetes.

Speaking during the World Diabetes Day Commemoration held at Block Six clinic on Tuesday, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Health and Wellness, Ms Shenaaz El-Halabi said there are currently 415 million people living with diabetes and by 2040, the number would have increased to 640 million if nothing was done.

El-Halabi said diabetes is the ninth leading cause of death in women globally, causing 2.1 million deaths each year.

“There are currently 199 million women with diabetes globally and this is expected to increase to 313 million by 2040, if nothing is done. However, up to 70 per cent of diabetes cases can be prevented”, she said. Ms El-Halabi stated that the trends in diabetes morbidity and mortality in Botswana are not different from the global picture.

She said she was disheartened by how Batswana engage in behaviours that expose them to the main risk factors of diabetes, such as poor diet and nutrition, physical inactivity, tobacco use and harmful use of alcohol. She her ministry was making all efforts to address issues of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) including diabetes.

The permanent secretary said the ministry had finalised the multi-sectoral national NCD strategy (2017-2022) which would consolidate and focus country efforts in mitigating the burden of NCD in Botswana.

“The strategy will give equal opportunity to all players but more emphasis on building sustainable community response mechanism in fighting NCD risk factors, furthermore focus on our ability to restore quality life to those affected through provision of evidence based care,” she said.

She touched on how they found it necessary to open facilities like Block Six clinic to provide comprehensive diabetes care, and also have Molepolole, Lobatse, Serowe, Selibe Phikwe, Francistown and Maun facilities to provide the same in due course.

She said efforts were being made that facilities should provide all services at one stop as patient management, patient education, laboratory services and medicines.

This year, she added, the commemoration focuses on women, as they are the gatekeepers of the household nutrition and lifestyle habits and have influence over long term health status of their children.

She said women have potential to drive prevention from the household and beyond, saying by empowering women and girls with easy and equitable access to knowledge and resources would strengthen their capacity to prevent diabetes in their families and better safeguard their own health.

Ms El-Halabi stated that this year’s campaign would promote the importance of affordable and equitable access to care for all women at risk for diabetes, or living with diabetes. For her part, chief medical officer at Block Six clinic and Princess Marina Hospital, Dr Aderonke Oyewo said the numbers of people living with diabetes continued to rise at an alarming rate.

She said in the 2015 International Diabetes Federation (IDF), it was noted that globally more people died from diabetes as compared to HIV, TB and Malaria combined.

Dr Oyewo mentioned that the ministry together with other stakeholders remained at the forefront of the fight against diabetes, thus the Diabetes Centers of Excellence were established in Gaborone and Francistown in the year 2011.

“The initiative of the Ministry of Health at that time was based on the need to improve and standardise the care and management of patients with diabetes which will in turn reduce the numbers of debilitating complications associated with poorly controlled diabetes,” she said.

She gave examples of blindness, renal failure, nerve damage, heart attacks, strokes, amputations, all of which are very costly to manage.

Dr Oyewo said diabetes centre of excellence in block six clinic is providing quality service of international standards to all diabetes patients with very good uptakes and outcomes.

She said they were looking forward to exit more stable patients back to their local health services in the near future, and were providing support and education to achieve this goal. She reiterated their commitment in providing the best care to women with diabetes.

Dr Oyewu commended the ministry and other stakeholders for the support towards the service. The world has set aside November 14 each year to commemorate World Diabetes Day. BOPA