By Job Osazuwa
Medical Director of United Heart Hospital and Clinics (UHHC), Lagos, Dr. Eugene Azubuike Nwosu, has explained why a high number of Nigerians are suffering from heart-related diseases.
The cardiologist, who practised for 33 years in the United States of America and other developed countries, identified some of the risk factors for heart disease to be: Eating poorly; old age; high blood pressure; diabetes and irregular physical exercise.
Others are high cholesterol in the body, smoking, family history, stress, pollution and poor dental hygiene.
Speaking at the commissioning of UHHC’s cardiovascular and cardiology centre, last week on Victoria Island, Lagos, he disclosed that the centre was established to tackle medical tourism.
Nwosu gave an assured that when certain precautions were taken, the risk factors in heart disease could be brought to the barest minimal.
He said the first thing was to have the knowledge of how to take care of oneself against cardiovascular infections, while emphasising that eating the right food and avoiding sedentary lifestyle play a big role in curtailing heart failure, stroke and other sudden attacks that don’t come with symptoms.
He disclosed that one of his focuses was to attract his colleagues abroad to return home and contribute their own quota to the development of the health care industry.
Nwosu said: “While I was enjoying all these superb facilities, l knew that there were a lot of rot and needs in Nigeria. I’m aware of the lack of specialists here, underfunded health care system, lack of infrastructure and poor remuneration for medical workers.
“I had to return home to do my little part; to set up a centre of a high standard that will allow me to practise the same way I had done in the US. When it comes to cases of cardiology, people can now access them here at a lower price, compared to travelling oversea to get the same service.”
He told Daily Sun that he would also be focusing on training young doctors, saying that failure to do so would amount to a waste of knowledge that he had acquired for almost four decades.