World Kidney Day (WKD) is a global health awareness campaign focusing on the importance of the kidneys and reducing the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated health problems worldwide.
World Kidney Day is observed annually on the 2nd Thursday in March. At the start of this holiday, 66 countries observed this date in 2006. Within two years, this number rose to 88. WKD is a joint initiative of the International Society of Nephrology (ISN) and the International Federation of Kidney Foundations (IFKF). This holiday was intended to raise awareness about afflictions of the kidney; although many are treatable, they are a secondary medical concern of the greater population.
And so, it was World Kidney Day yesterday. I had attended an event held within Gbagada General Hospital at the conference room of the Cardiac & Renal Centre in the city of Lagos, Nigeria. This event lasted for about two hours.
The event was organised by OJB Foundation and the Cardiac and Renal Centre managed by Renescor Health (www.renescor.com). The distinguished guests of the events were Mr. Okungbowa Jezreel Babatunde (OJB); founder of OJB Foundation, Rev. Sis. Bamigbe; Matron of the foundation and Rev. Fr. Amolegbe, of St. Timothy’s Catholic Church, Ojodu.
The opening talks were given by the matron and patron before OJB came on to deliver a very sensational speech from his experience as a kidney transplant recipient. What I took from his many insightful words were “In Nigeria, we are not in the habit of regular medical check-ups…, it’s just not “our style” and this keeps us vulnerable to many fatal ailments”. This fact/finding is really bad for the overall health of the Nigerian populace. We need to adopt preventive medicine in these times and it greatly has a lot to do with nutrition, behavior and lifestyle changes.
The programme went on with seminar sessions from Dr. Yemisi Abdulsalam; Consultant Endocrinologist, Cardiac & Renal Centre on the topic – Burden of Diabetes in Patient with Chronic Kidney Disease. Then followed up by Dr. Ngozi Aikpokpo; Consultant Nephrologist, Cardiac & Renal Centre who spoke on Treatment Options for Chronic Kidney Disease.
When the seminar session was exhausted, the question and answer segment started naturally (and yes, you can bet I asked a “head turning” but VITAL question LOL)
I had a brief interview session from the EbonyLife TV (DSTV 165) reporter; Jacklyn and her crew and also the Raypower (100.5FM) reporter; Tomisi for the event. The programme was a successful one in celebration to healthy kidneys all around the globe.
Show some love to your kidneys even while you turn up this weekend. Healthy Eating (and Drinking) is Happy Living.
