In 2023, Afe Babalola University (ABUAD) recognizes that prevention and education are essential for good health and well-being. Acknowledging that “Health is Wealth” and that meaningful poverty cannot be eradicated in an unhealthy environment, ABUAD offers a wide range of free basic healthcare services. These include hygiene and sanitation programs, nutrition and diet management, and initiatives to support infants.
In 2021 and 2022, the university ran numerous health outreach programs, which have continued in 2023 through the Afe Babalola University Multisystem Hospital (AMSH). There has been a remarkable increase of over 750% in the number of low-income households receiving various healthcare services.
Additionally, in 2023, the ABUAD Multisystem Hospital provides valuable safety and health awareness events, along with vaccination campaigns, offered at no cost to members of the Ado Ekiti community and beyond.
Health Awareness
Open Gym and Fitness Classes: We offer free fitness and meditation classes for students and interested members of the community during the 2023/2024 academic session. Announcements about upcoming classes always sent via sent via email, Telegram and Slack.
Healthy Snacks and Fruits: All ABUAD restaurants provide healthy snacks and fruits at discounted rates for staff and students throughout the 2023/2024 academic session. This initiative continues from the previous academic year.
Heart Rate Monitoring: Similar to the 2022/2023 academic session, ABUAD Multisystem Hospital continues to offer a variety of biofeedback equipment in the 2023/2024 academic session. This equipment allows the one to understand how the heart rate, breathing, and muscle tension are affected by stress and calming activities. Using this equipment can help one manage ones body’s responses to emotional and mental stress.
Workshops and Certifications: In 2023, ABUAD offers a wide range of occupational health and safety workshops and training programs to support faculty and students in maintaining an accident-free work environment. These include the Annual Certified Basic Life Support Course, the Injury Prevention Workshop, and the Certified Health and Safety Management of Hazardous Materials & Waste Workshop.
Community Health Outreach and Vaccination campaigns
The ABUAD College of Health and Medical Sciences, in partnership with the ABUAD Multisystem Hospital offers free health campaign programs. Such community programs include
Kidney Disease Prevention Campaign
The ABUAD Multi-System Hospital, Renal Dialysis Centre, took significant strides to raise public awareness in honor of World Kidney Day 2023. As kidney disease continues to rise in prevalence globally and the demand for hemodialysis treatment grows, the Nephrology unit of AMSH was established to deliver exceptional renal care services for patients facing kidney challenges. This initiative has successfully performed 15 kidney transplants alongside countless dialysis treatments that support those in need.
On Friday, March 10, 2023, the Centre upheld its commitment to educating the public about the crucial importance of kidney health, marking World Kidney Day with a series of outreach activities. ABUAD dedicated this day to raising awareness as part of a worldwide campaign that emphasizes the necessity of maintaining healthy kidneys and aims to reduce the burden of kidney disease and its related health complications. In a proactive effort to engage the community, free health check-ups were offered to the residents of Ado Ekiti, ensuring that individuals could access crucial information about their kidney health. This year’s theme, “Kidney Health for Everyone, Everywhere – Kidney Health for All,” embodies the Centre’s commitment to advocating for renal health and making essential health resources accessible.
Health workers at the center recently visited Ado-Ekiti and neighboring communities to raise awareness and provide free kidney medical examinations. The goal of this initiative is to enhance education and awareness about effective symptom management and patient empowerment, ultimately encouraging active participation in health maintenance. During the 2023 week-long health outreach focused on kidney and kidney-related diseases, a total of 9,534 patients received free health services, marking a 56% improvement compared to the 2022 edition. It is important to mention that in 2020, the center was upgraded and expanded with state-of-the-art hemodialysis machines, allowing it to accommodate more patients, both for routine hemodialysis and those with special needs. The center has continued to provide healthcare to the public throughout 2023.
An American-based philanthropic organisation, Project C.U.R.E., in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), USAID and Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti, ABUAD, in February 13th, 2023 holds a one-day sensitisation programme for the women, nurses, midwives and doctors as well as allied medical professionals in Ikere Local Government Area of Ekiti State, South Western Nigeria tagged: ‘Helping Babies Breathe’, (HBB) in support of the University’s ultra-modern 400-bed Multi System Hospital and in honour of Yeye Aare Modupe Babalola, the wife of ABUAD’s founder, Aare Afe Babalola, SAN and in fulfilment of one of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs) especially, the SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being.
The training, which was anchored by Ms. Jennifer Manhoff and Ms. Amy Greene was zero in on the availability of skilled birth attendants at birth, assessment of every baby, temperature support, stimulation to breathe and assisted ventilation as needed within the first minute of birth otherwise known as the “golden minute” after birth The one-day training programme for women, nurses, midwives and doctors as well as allied medical professionals is powered by Project C.U.R.E., WHO and USAID, as well as ABUAD and meant to ensure that babies don’t die within the first minute after birth, otherwise known as the “golden minute.
Afe Babalola: I lost six siblings to poor maternal care
The founder of Afe Babalola University in Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), Aare Afe Babalola (SAN), has said he lost six of his siblings to poor maternal care.
The eminent lawyer promised that the university’s teaching hospital, ABUADTH, will give priority to maternal and child care to prevent neonatal maternity.
Babalola spoke at a workshop held on the 14th day of April 2021 with respect to Helping Babies Breathe (HBB), sponsored by the university, in conjunction with Project C.U.R.E., World Health Organisation (WHO) and United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
The event was attended by the wife of Ekiti State deputy governor, Chief (Mrs) Funke Egbeyemi; wife of Ewi of Ado-Ekiti, Mrs. Bosede Adejugbe; Chief Executive of ABUAD Ventures, Mrs. Modupe Babalola, as well as midwives, nurses and other health workers.
Babalola said: “In those days, some children were born while their mothers were going to the farm and such children would be carried back home in basket. My mother gave birth to 10 of us but only four of us survived.
“I was a survivor of child mortality about 90 years ago. A mother is like gold, and gold is very precious. We must do everything possible to save them and their babies.
“We are grateful to Project C.U.R.E. and other partners for this training. In our hospital, we have a special wing for women and children.”
Ms. Amy Greene, who spoke for the agency’s President, Dr. Douglas Jackson, said they held the programme at ABUAD to support the new 400-bed multi-system ABUADTH.
Greene, who said the agency donated $1 million medical equipment to ABUADTH, said it had saved about 1,620 babies from untimely death due to the training it offered experts in sub-Saharan Africa.
She said: “In Africa, less than 33 per cent of children have access to neonatal care and this mainly predisposed them to deaths caused by malnutrition, diarrhoea, HIV/AIDS and other preventable diseases.
“With this training, our medical personnel will be able to sensitise expectant mothers about the hazards associated with poor neonatal care and the need to take care of their personal hygiene for improved health of our babies.”
Mrs. Babalola noted that besides saving about 60,500 babies from deaths, Project C.U.R.E also trained 1,343 birth attendants and facilitated train-the-trainers trips worldwide through the HBB programme.
She added: “With this training, the three most common causes of preventable neonatal deaths – complications during childbirth, complications from preterm birth and neonatal infections – would be reduced.
“But there is need for us to get to the grassroots where unregistered deaths take place and where deaths are often erroneously associated to witches and wizards without paying attention to the real issue.”
ABUAD hospital trains 300 workers to tackle child mortality
Tuesday, 6th October, 2020 ABUADNEWS
Afe Babalola University Teaching Hospital (ABUADTH) has trained 300 of its workers in partnership with a United States agency, Project CURE, to tackle child mortality. This training was held on Tuesday, 6th October, 2020 at the Conference Hall of the University Teaching Hospital.
The training tagged: ‘Helping a Baby Breathe,’ was borne out of the desire to reduce motherless babies and high number of orphans caused by child mortality.
Speaking at a dinner at the weekend for officials of Project CURE, the founder of Afe Babalola University (ABUAD), Ado-Ekiti, Aare Afe Babalola, hailed the health agency for assistance to medical institutions in Africa and the developing world.
He praised the President/Chief Executive Officer of the agency, Dr. Douglas Jackson, for believing in humanity.
Babalola said: “Project CURE has been of immense benefits to African nations. It has given over 300 sophisticated equipment to hospitals in Africa.
“We thank Project CURE for this partnership. It will help in exposing our experts in modern techniques of making a child survive after birth.
“We decided to partner you, because this university was established to make a difference in Nigeria and we assure you that we will extend the knowledge gained to other areas of Ekiti.”
After presenting certificates of participation to the participants, Dr. Ramos said the first minute of a baby after its birth called golden minute was crucial for its survival.
He urged experts to use the techniques to help the baby breathe, to reduce child mortality.
Ramos added: “Project CURE is committed to improving the well-being of the people. This is why this partnership is going to be a long term one.
“This helping the baby to survive initiative is a crucial aspect of medicine. It goes along with making mothers survive during labour. The two are like Siamese twins.
“We thank ABUAD for going beyond the shores of Nigeria to seek help on how to improve the health sector, because it remains the most crucial aspect of medicine.
“We want the experts to spread the gospel by teaching others the new technique in making a baby survive, by making them jettison the old style of slapping or turning babies upside down for them to take the first breathe.”
The Provost, College of Health Sciences, Prof. Rotimi Sanya, said the initiative became important on the premise that not all babies could breathe after delivery, except they were aided medically.
The dinner was attended by the Project CURE team led by Dr. Carlos Ramos and Dr. Lee Jones.
- Annual HIV/AID Awareness Campaign
- Annual Seasonal Flu Vaccination Campaign
- Annual Blood Donation Campaign
- Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign
- Diabetes Prevention Campaign
- Vitamin D Screening Campaign
- Organ Donation Awareness Campaign
Self-help resources
- AsthmaVisor is a groundbreaking wearable solution developed by a dedicated team of students and researchers at ABUAD. This device empowers users to effectively monitor their asthma conditions by tracking critical environmental and physiological data. It analyzes air quality, smoke and dust levels, heart rate, and stress levels, delivering valuable insights into the specific triggers and conditions that can lead to asthma attacks. With AsthmaVisor, users gain the awareness and control they need to manage their health proactively.
- WellTrack: Interactive self-help therapy site. Use your ABUAD email credentials to register and create a login.
- Mental Health Screening: Take a free test to assess the state of your mental health.
IT Manager
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