The HealthZone: The Best 30 Minutes of Television

Dr. Toju Chike-Obi and Ronke Ekwensi

On any given day, when you sit in front of your television, you are presented with a variety of choices. You may choose to court misery by watching depressing local and international news or check in with reality television and reassure yourself that other people’s lives are more of a train wreck than yours. Or you may choose to escape into the world of Africa Magic for a dose of Nollywood’s rendering of intrigue and betrayal at the heart of every African village. Why not choose something more valuable? Invest 30 minutes and educate yourself on health. Watch The HealthZone, the best 30 minutes on television.

Debuting it’s new season on Channels TV in April 2015, The HealthZone is a stimulating health television programme that delivers health education on the most common ailments affecting Nigerians, in simple terms that everyone can understand. Its entertaining format features street interviews on a specific health topic, doctors providing valuable health information, correcting the myths and untruths and providing you with facts that could possibly save your life. The HealthZone is edutainment at its best – valuable health educational content, yet entertaining enough that you don’t realize you’re learning.

The HealthZoneis the brainchild of HealthCore Ltd, a partnership of three business and health industry experts with decades of relevant expertise acquired from leading international institutions. The HealthCore team recognises that poor health literacy among the populations of sub-Saharan Africa magnifies the already grim outcomes that are the result of the continent’s weak health systems.

The creators of the show believe that when people become ill, it is important that they understand symptoms, are knowledgeable about disease transmission, are aware of basic self-care measures and know when to seek appropriate care. A well-informed public will be better positioned to take preventive care actions that can significantly improve health outcomes and reduce the burden on weak health systems. Unfortunately, there are very few resources that methodically educate the public on relevant health topics and actions they can take to manage health better.

This is where the HealthCore team comes in, systematically disseminating health information to the Nigerian public in a consistent effort to bridge this gap. The show’s focus on empowering the public to adopt preventive health care and health promotion principles is central to the team’s aspiration to move the outcomes needle positively. The HealthZone television programme is one of the several platforms the group is using to accomplish their goal. Their other platforms include a weekly HealthZone blog and short 2-minute videos, The HealthZone Med Minutes.

The HealthZone deals with important contemporary health topics that can positively impact health outcomes. It takes into account cultural issues, beliefs and human behaviour as it educates the public. The programme has an impressive roster of carefully selected, knowledgeable, highly skilled doctors and health professionals who are experts in their respective fields of specialty. Taking their time, they break down complex medical facts into easily understood cohesive health information.

In its first season, an episode on Fibroids, a benign tumour of the womb, begins as all the episodes do, with the “Man on the Street” segment, which samples the public’s perspective on the topic of the day. The responses of a random selection of men and women on the street to questions about Fibroids are hilarious. One man has no clue what fibroids are, another who clearly had no idea, stated that he found fibroids delicious to eat! Funny, but poignantly telling of the public’s lack of knowledge regarding common health problems.

After the short “Man on the Street” segment, the programme returned to the studio where the learning began in earnest. The guest expert, an American trained, board-certified Obstetrician/Gynaecologist, with the help of simple illustrations, lively banter and well-crafted questions from the host, taught the viewers about Fibroids. At the end of the episode, the show host recapped the signs and symptoms, preventive measures and how to get proper evaluation and treatment for the condition. Every HealthZone episode has this same approach.

If you think this sounds novel and innovative by Nigerian standards, it is. Already on record, is the fact that the Fibroids episode saved a life. Deep in Nigeria’s middle belt, a female viewer prompted to seek expert care after watching the Fibroids episode, received lifesaving surgery a few weeks later.

So we ask again, how would you rather spend your 30 minutes? It’s time to change the narrative on your health. The HealthZone television show is your game changer.