The elderly urged to visit health facilities
By Nganyi Obiero
The elderly from the luhya community have been urged to visit health facilities and also take medicine as a measure to curb diseases that can be prevented instead of waiting until the situation is irreversible.
While addressing mourners during the funeral of mzee Jackson Indetie Akala at Eshibimbi village in Butere Sub-county in Kakamega county Dr. Wilberforce Waiyanga said that the elderly neither visit hospitals nor take medicine as a precaution thus they end up having incurable diseases.
“You are scared of going to hospitals to let nurses look at you in our health centers. Its time you swallowed your pride and visited these centers so as we can have many of you living above the age of 80 as a majority are dying at a lesser age.” Waiyanga said.
Waiyanga further said that he had proposed to the county government of Kakamega to start weekly medical camps for the elderly only all over the county so as to be able to encourage them to take care of their health by viewing health facilities as places meant to improve their well being.
He also encouraged parents from this region to embrace education and take their children to school as performance had dropped to its lowest.
“How do you expect us to have doctors from our region if we don’t love education? He asked.
“During our days our parents never went to school but they loved the teachers and that is why we went to school. Parents of this days are no longer encouraging their children to go to school nor read hard.”
Mzee Jackson Indetie died at the age of 84 and left a widow, 5 children several grandchildren and great grandchildren and was praised for being calm, loving and a peacemaker by the many mourners who thronged his funeral.
His daughter Dr. Selpher Cheloti praised her father for instilling discipline in her.”Papa you were a great pillar of strength to me. You taught me to be strong and focused. You raised me like a princess yet you did not have much. I will miss the pampering that goes with being a ‘kukhu to your father’. Papa you left so fast before I could also come and carry you in your sickness. I release you to the lord our god and our maker. Rest in peace my beloved Papa.”
Dr Anthony Mungai who works with Dr selpher in south eastern university thanked mzee Indetie for bringing his daughter in a manner that she has earned respect among her peers due to the discipline she was instilled as a young person.
