Lack of adherence to medication, late diagnosis and failure to go for screening are major contributors to deaths in Nyandarua and Central region at large.
Outgoing Health CS Sicily Kariuki on Friday said many Nyandarua residents who suffer from non-communicable diseases do not follow the doctors’ prescriptions. She said once the pain ceases, most patients throw away the medicine.
“We are losing people due to these poor habits," she said.
Kariuki spoke at Tumaini Health Centre in Tumaini town, Ol Kalou constituency, during a free medical outreach carried out by medical experts from Kenyatta National Hospital. More than 700 residents were treated.
She said once diseases like cancer, hypertension and diabetes are discovered, patients are advised to take the medication continuously "but this is not happening in the region".
Further, Kariuki noted, people do not go for screening in time and only rush to the hospital when they get too sick and develop complications. She emphasised that some non-communicable ailments, if discovered early, are curable and people return to their normal lives.
The CS said medics have raised concerns that women and girls in Central are reluctant to go for cervical cancer screening.
She said there are enough female medics to do the screening in case the women find it embarrassing to be screened by male doctors.
“You must agree to undergo these tests because that is why these doctors are trained. To detect and treat," she said.
The CS noted that compared to other regions, few girls aged 10 in Nyandarua have received the HPV vaccination.
Nyandarua Health executive John Mungai said there are 8,000 cases of cancer in Nyandarua. Breast cancer is the most common followed by cervical cancer and the cancer of the oesophagus while the Colon cancer is fourth.
