18th February, 2011
About 2,400 teachers and non-teaching staff in the employment of Lagos Mainland Education Authority, during the week, went through urine and blood pressure tests for them to know their health problems.
The Executive Secretary of the Education Authority, Mr. Bisi Lawrence, said the programme was introduced to prevent occurrence of avoidable deaths that snatched two members of its staff in December last year.
He explained that after the sudden death of the two staff members, he invited a medical doctor to deliver a lecture on what to do to prevent untimely deaths among the staff.
Mr. Lawrence stated that after the seminar, the management of the authority went a step further to organise a test for the staff and invited a medical consultant, Dr. Kamal Olu, for the exercise.
Mr. Lawrence advised the staff to follow the instructions and medical advice given to them after the test and continue to use the drugs prescribed for them.
He also advised them to always give their health priority over other things, stressing that they could only use such if they are healthy and alive.
In his speech, Dr. Kamal Olu said that the urine test would enable them to know any hidden sickness in their body and tackle it before it develops.
He noted that sudden death is rampant in the society because people fail to take care of themselves and urged the participants to always seek medical advice once they notice any sign of sickness in their body.
Dr. Olu also advised them to ensure that they do urine tests at least once in a year and visit their doctors regularly.
Some of the teachers who spoke with P.M.NEWS commended the intiative of the executive secretary on the programme.
They explained that most of them go to work on daily basis without caring for their health, noting that the programme was the first of its kind among the local education authorities in Lagos State.
—Akinloye Adelusi