Prudential Assurance Uganda Limited (Prudential Uganda) one of the leading life and health insurance providers in Uganda has today launched the fourth edition of the annual “Omutima Gwo” campaign aimed at creating awareness on heart health with a focus on prevention, detection, treatment, and reversal of heart related diseases.
The campaign which was launched at the Uganda Heart Institute in partnership with the Ministry of Health, Uganda Heart Institute, International Medical Centre, Radio One, Akaboozi, Capital FM Next Media Services, and Dr. Kasenene Wellness; was presided over by Dr Gerald Mutungi, the Commissioner Non-Communicable Diseases at the Ministry of Health.
Speaking during the launch, Mr. Arjun Mallik, Regional CEO, Prudential East & Central Africa explained that good health is a key component of our daily lives and collective effort towards better awareness and lifestyle is the best investment any community can make.
“As a business, promoting wellness within communities where we operate is important to us. Whether it is spreading awareness around mental heath or Cardiovascular health, Prudential remains committed to improving lives. By sponsoring the Omutima Gwo campaign for four years we have impacted positively the lives of 12 million Ugandans with the information they need on prevention, detection, treatment, and reversal of heart related diseases,” said Arjun.
The Omutima Gwo campaign was first launched in 2018 and has since been held annually. Two heart camps have been held so far; in 2018 and 2019 giving over 5000 Ugandans the opportunity to get free heart health checks. Over 12 million Ugandans have also received heart health messages on how to amend their lifestyle to prevent the onset of cardio vascular disease.
Speaking on behalf of the Ministry of Health (MoH), Dr Gerald Mutungi, the Commissioner Non -Communicable Diseases at MOH said , “We are proud of the work that Prudential is doing looking and the strides that they’ve made over the last couple of years in fighting a condition that continues to affect many people, expensive to treat and in many cases is not easily detectable without appropriate equipment.”
“There is great need for more partners and individuals to come on board and support a noble cause of this nature, magnitude and importance,” he added.
In his remarks, Owek. Apollo Makubuya, the Board Chairman, Prudential Uganda observed that, “With the continued support from our partners, we are able to help the public access these services at no cost to them. We thank our partners for working with us and helping the public access these services”.
Out of the abundance of caution to prevent the spread of Covid, a heart camp will not be held this year. Instead, IMC will provide free heart health assessments and check-ups including Body Mass Index (BMI), Electrocardiography (ECG) and Echocardiography (ECO) for free to the public. These will be provided at the IMC clinics IDC, Kololo, Wandegeya, Namirembe Rd, Entebbe Rd, Mukono, Gulu and Mbale; on appointment.
As part of the campaign, partner media houses run a public health campaign to create awareness on heart. This will include the running of heart health tips and a couple of media interviews with renowned medical experts who will speak into heart health with focus on prevention, detection, treatment, and reversal of heart related diseases
Uganda is still endemic for Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD), the most common cause of preventable acquired disease in children and young adults. It is estimated that 300,000 school children in Uganda have Rheumatic Heart Disease. This data reflects an urgent need for countries to establish cost-effective public health programs aimed at reducing cardiovascular risk through modifiable behaviours.
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