RECESSION MAKING HEART FAILURE PATIENTS DISCHARGE SELVES –CARDIOLOGISTS

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any heart failure patients resort to discharging themselves because they cannot afford the admission fee, which runs into several thousands of naira, cardiologists have said.

The experts are therefore advocating a healthier lifestyle among Nigerians to prevent the disease.

The advice came on Tuesday during a briefing to commemorate the World Heart Day in Lagos.

Speaking at the event organised by Novartis, a Consultant Cardiologist, Pro. Amani Ubakwem, noted that heart failure patients require four hospital admissions in a year, with each costing thousands of naira.

“Between 20- and 30 per cent of all hospital admissions are related to heart. 

These are people in the middle age category. A lot of them are artisans or junior civil servants. More than two thirds of our patients are depressed. 

Some stop taking their drugs and some discharge themselves.

“There is no single approach to winning this war. If you meet 10 Nigerians, probably three of them are hypertensive. So, we have to live a healthier life by cutting down on the risk factors. We have to cut down on our salt intake, do more exercise and eat fruits and vegetables.

“The government can also help by subsidising drugs for the patients. All the heart failure patients cannot be seen in tertiary hospitals and even if we attend to them, they still have to continue their care at the primary health care centre.

“But how do you continue your care if the people there do not have basic equipment? We need to defend the health system,’’ she said.

In her remarks, another Consultant Cardiologist, Prof. Jane Ajuluchukwu, urged Nigerians to eat and live right. According to her, many bitters and natural herbs contain chemicals that could weaken the heart muscles.

“It is not everything that is natural that is healthy. Nigerians are boiling pawpaw and mango leaves. They are taking all kinds of bitters which could contain chemicals,’’ she said. Read more