Africa-Press – Botswana. Health officials have raised concern over lack of adherence to HIV/AIDS medication by People with Disabilities (PWDs).
Speaking at the wellness campaign for PWDs in Maun on Wednesday, Ngami District Health Management Team (DHMT) coordinator, Dr Sandra Maripe said they had discovered a worrisome trend where PWDs defaulted on Anti Retroviral therapy (ARVs) hence putting their own lives at risk.
She highlighted that some people with disabilities struggled to accept that they had a disability, adding that some caregivers neglected them.
Dr Maripe said the wellness campaign aimed to equip PWDs, their families, the community and other stakeholders with knowledge on ways preventing diseases.
Furthermore, she explained that it aimed to provide clientele with health services and improve stakeholder collaborations while also promoting a healthy lifestyle for PWDs.“A healthy lifestyle is important to all, but for people with disabilities it is more critical because with good health the effect of the disability is minimised,” she said.
She highlighted that the Ministry of Health came up with the multi sectorial strategy for the prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) which focused on four major NCDs being cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetics and chronic respiratory diseases which accounted for 82 per cent of NCDs related deaths.
However Dr Maripe stated that there were common modifiable factors to those diseases being smoking, alcohol abuse, unhealthy diet and lack of exercise.
‘’Let’s eat healthy and adopt a fitness routine, we can walk, jog or go to gym for those who can because a healthy lifestyle means constant attention to what you see and feel in your body,’’ she said.
Tshidilo Stimulation Centre physiotherapist, Mr Daniel Dibebe stated that disabilities were expensive for both the caretakers and one who had the disability, adding that it was imperative that a person with disability maintained a healthy lifestyle so that they avoided contracting other diseases.
‘’It is already expensive for a person with disability to access health facilities because they need special care and transportation, now if they have High Blood pressure or diabetics it will double up the baggage and demand more resources for them to access healthcare regularly,” she said.
Moreover, he said NCDs could cause more disabilities, citing diabetes, which he noted could cause blindness hence rendering it more difficult for a person with disabilities and their caretakers.
Mr Dibebe stated that it was imperative for PWDs to have a strong support system to relieve them the financial, mental and physical burden.
Tshidilo Stimulation Centre chairperson, Mr Seoka Kenosi thanked all healthcare service providers for supporting the wellness campaign organised by the centre.
He stated that a wellness day for PWDs should be a priority in many organisations because it offered a platform for PWDs to access services and learn.
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