An NGO, Beacon Youths Initiative (BYI), has organised free Hepatitis testing for no fewer than 500 people in Lafia, Nasarawa State.
Mr Envoh Okolo, the Executive Director of BYI, said this during the commencement of the exercise on Wednesday in Lafia.
He said the exercise was in collaboration with John Hopkins Program for International Education in Gynaecology and Obstetrics (Jhpiego).
According to him, the testing will afford the people the opportunity to know their status and to either get vaccinated or treated.
“Hepatitis has actually killed a lot of people without them realising that it was the actual cause of their death.
“So, knowing one’s status will help to curtail the alarming rate of hepatitis in the state.
“If a person is negative, he or she will be vaccinated and if positive, will be placed on treatment immediately,” he said.
The executive director further explained that those found to be negative would be given three months vaccine to protect them for 10 years.
Okolo attributed the increasing rate of hepatitis in the state to low level of awareness, low funding for hepatitis programmes and stigmatisation of infected persons.
He said that the organisation was committed to improving the quality of life of those infected through testing, counselling, sensitisation and vaccine.
He said that the outreach was a modest contribution by the NGO toward addressing the increasing health challenges of the less privilege in the society.
“It is our belief that this intervention would assist the people to know their status and take precautionary measures to avert escalating their health conditions,” he said.
Okolo, therefore, called on the people to go for testing to know their status in order to eliminate hepatitis in the state.
Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, James Audu and Aliyu Mohammed expressed gratitude to the NGO for giving them opportunity to know their status. (NAN)