Diabetes: Governments urged to subsidise cost of treatment

Governments at all levels in the country have been called upon to as a matter necessity subsidise diabetes drugs and treatments to enable the poor who live with the disease manage it well as well as provide foot care facilities as some of the measures to mitigate amputation of limbs among diabetics.

The call was made by members of the Diabetes Association of Nigeria (DAN) when they converged in Abeokuta, Ogun state on Wednesday 14th November 2019 where they held their annual general meeting and elected new executive officers that will lead the association for the next three years.

According to a communique issued at the end of the meeting, the Congress proffered some recommendations on how to tackle the disease as follows including massive education on the menace of the disease and how to properly manage it.

The Congress also advised diabetics patients on self-care through healthy eating, good meal timing habits, regular exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, proper use of medication and self-monitoring of glucose as some of the ways of managing the disease.

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According to the communique signed by the National Publicity Secretary of the Association, Najib Sani, the Congress have also during the meeting discussed on the problems facing diabetes patients in Nigeria and observed that the disease has attained great significance in the sub-Saharan region with Nigeria being the most affected.

During the meeting, the association unanimously resolved that the former executive officers including the president, vice President 1, secretary-general, assistant secretary, assistant secretary 2, treasurer, welfare Officer and Ex-officio should be retained having been satisfied with their performance.

However, there was election into the offices of the national publicity secretary, vice President North West and vice President South West.

The new national officers are: Dr Alkali Mohammed, president, Ejiofor Ugwu, Vice president 1, Aisha Indo Lawan, Vice president North West, Dr I.F Korubo, Vice president South-South, Alhaji Bolarinwan Dauda, Vice president South West, Bernard Enyia, Secretary-general, BNK Adejuwon, Assistant secretary 1, and Salisu Muazu, Assistant secretary 2.

Others are; Modupe Salam, Treasurer, Najib Sani, Publicity Secretary and Josephine Aregbesola, Welfare Officer. While the ex-officio are Prof Sunday Chinenye and Hajiya Uwa Shehu Abubakar.