Men urged to seek medical health timeously

KZN Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane has sent out a heartfelt plea to all men to embrace a culture of disease prevention.

“Men must know their health status and seek medical help when they are sick; that is not a sign of weakness,” she said.

Speaking on the Department of Health’s (DoH) KZN Health Chat multimedia programme in Durban recently, Simelane explained that the DoH was going all out this month and beyond, to meet men where they are and bring them closer to health services that they often shy away from.

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“We are encouraging men to change their mindset and realise that seeking help is not a sign of weakness. We are urging them to come closer to clinics, community health centres and hospitals.
“It’s important for men to get tested and know where they stand as far their health is concerned.

“It is a known fact that men generally don’t like to visit health facilities. Women do, as do girls. You can see that they grow up knowing it’s normal to seek help. But when it comes to men and even boys, you can see they don’t want to come through.

“This makes it difficult for us to deal with various ailments that affect them,” said Simelane.

The MEC added that this reluctance to seek help has devastating consequences, and that many men end up dying from illnesses that could have been treated if they had sought treatment earlier.

She said she was incredibly concerned that it is not uncommon for men to suffer from severe headaches due to high blood pressure or a hypertensive crisis, and not seek help until it leads to something as serious as a stroke.

“The department has rolled out 129 men-friendly clinics throughout KZN, which is regarded as a major step forward. This is a good achievement when you consider we didn’t have any two years ago.

“These clinics don’t only deal with issues such as erectile dysfunction, they address men’s health needs holistically, including ailments such as high blood pressure, diabetes, mental health, HIV, TB, cancer screening, and much more,” she said.

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