Medical Doctors in Lagos State have raised concern over the rapidly increasing cases of High Blood Pressure and other hypertensive disorders among patients presenting at several clinics across the state in recent times.

The doctors, under the banner of the Association of General and Private Medical Practitioners of Nigeria, AGPMPN, Lagos State Chapter, who made this known while speaking to reporters said many cases are due to accumulated stress caused by the series of continuous road traffic jams across the state.

President of the Association, Dr. Tunji Akintade who spoke ahead of their 2018 AGM Conference in Lagos, said that stress caused by incessant traffic on roads currently under-going reconstruction has increased, “the consequence of this is the sudden rise in the number of hypertensive cases witnessed in our hospitals.”

Akintade expressed regrets, as human resources meant to cater for people’s health are now migrating for greener pasture, “this has caused a lot of setback in the health of the average Nigerian living in Lagos. We hereby call for flexible public-private partnership through the health insurance scheme whose premium is priced separately from those prices for public facilities.”

Akintade raised concerns over the steadily increasing number of eatery outlets in Lagos state without the adequate screening of handlers by the relevant authorities.

“Before any eatery employs food handlers, they are supposed to turn in a medical report. That is the standard, but compliance is very low. If we fail to comply with that, it will cause a lot of health burden in the state.

“Our water pipes run through our drains with the tendency for leaking. The outbreak of cholera in Lagos state this year is totally unacceptable. The environmental pollution as a result of the bad state of our waste disposal system is absurd.

“We are calling on the State Government to prioritize the safety of citizens which is the primary responsibility of the government. This security is not only physical but also chemical or biological.

Vanguard