Organisations Hold Training Workshop on Foot Care

Martins Ifijeh

In a bid to help prevent and manage complications of diabetes mellitus, now on the increase worldwide, with Nigeria having the highest number of cases in Africa, Rainbow Specialist Medical Centre, in partnership with the World Diabetes Foundation and the Podiatry Institute, USA, has announced plans to organise its third annual five-day capacity building workshop on diabetes foot care.

According to a press release signed by the Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. Afoke Isiavwe, the workshop, which holds in Lagos from August 15th to 19th, aims at empowering health workers with much needed skills to help prevent, identify and reduce the risk of diabetes-related foot amputations in the country.

Diabetic foot complications, though preventable, are a leading cause of admission, amputation and mortality in diabetic patients worldwide.

“For diabetes mellitus foot syndrome, prevention is better than cure. Sadly, many persons affected report for treatment too late when not much can be done to help them, except amputation, to save their lives. The workshop is therefore being organised to bring the medical practitioners and other healthcare workers involved in diabetes management up-to-date, especially in the care of the foot of persons living with diabetes.

“Podiatry, a branch of medicine which deals with the care of the foot, is currently not taught in any Nigerian school of medicine. Rainbow Specialist Medical Centre plans to bridge this gap, in the interim, by providing a hands on forum for Nigerian healthcare professionals to acquire basic foot care skills,” Isiavwe said.

With the theme: “Initiating, Implementing and Sustaining a National Diabetes Foot Care Policy”, the workshop is expected to feature resource persons from the USA, South Africa and from within Nigeria.

Participants in the workshop, according to the statement, will include medical doctors, nurses, plaster technicians, residents in internal medicine, paediatrics, and orthopaedic surgery, and healthcare workers caring for persons living with diabetes.