From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
A health advocacy initiative, Art for Health Naija, has raised the alarm over worsening cases of antimicrobial resistance, calling on governments at all levels to invest more in tackling the menace through awareness creation.
The convener of the initiative, Rose-Camile Aneke made the call yesterday at the Centre for Memories, Enugu during an art exhibition held as part of activities marking this year’s AMR week.
The event is targeted at creating awareness about the prevailing antimicrobial resistance in the society.
Speaking at the event, Aneke said that urgent action was needed as AMR was fast becoming one of the world’s most urgent public health problems.
She said: “AMR occurs when germs develop the ability to defeat the drugs that are designed to kill them,” she said. “AMR has the potential to affect people at any stage of life.
“The first awareness was in Owerri and now we are in Enugu, we plan to keep moving. We are trying to be creative around spreading messages around health in ways that are captivating and educating for the public.”
Aneke said that it was important to adopt preventive practices, including regular hand washing, avoiding self-medication, adhering to prescribed medications, and getting vaccinated to prevent diseases in the first place.
On his part, Faculty Member Media-EIS Fellowship Program, which supported the event, Leslie Udoh said that the choice of arts exhibition, including microbe related games, paintings and drama became necessary as arts has emerged as a form of expression which helps to immortalise messages, particularly those around health.