Cameroon: Our Lady Seat of Wisdom College Students Drilled on Personal and Environmental Hygiene

By Boris Esono Nwenfor

LEBIALEM, Cameroon – As soon as another student walked in to consult, Nkemze Jenneth, a Nurse and part of the LECUDO USA free medical campaign team could sense a familiar complaint. She had just dealt with it a moment ago and has now been called again to do the same.

Personal hygiene was a constant worry that the students of the Our lady Seat of Wisdom College aka Mutual Love Secondary School presented upon their consultation. “Yesterday I went to the free medical campaign to consult as I had the problem of personal hygiene,” Atembe Kelvin Smith, a student tells Pan African Visions.

“Today, the doctors have explained what causes it and how we can prevent it from reoccurring again. One of the things they said is that we should avoid sharing innerwear, avoid walking from bed to bed and keep our toilets clean."

The free Medical Mission/Health Campaign is the third of its kind and is organized by the Focolare Movement/Mary Health of Africa Hospital Fontem supported by LECUDO-USA and carried out in Fontem and Fonjumetaw, in Lebialem Division of the South West Region of Cameroon.

Nkemze Jenneth, a Nurse and a worker at the Douala General Hospital said: “I am here for the health campaign that is organized by LECUDO USA to at least come closer to our people. Within the campaign period, we consulted students from the Seat of Wisdom College and one of the general problems we noticed was that of personal hygiene. After the consultation, we met the Chief medical officer and thought the school had a general problem that needed to be dealt with.”

“Our main issue was to give them a health talk on environmental and personal hygiene that may be the main cause of the general personal hygiene that they were complaining about. Their water may be another cause but the main thing was to let them know the importance of environmental and personal hygiene.”

Nkemze added: “Concerning the female students, they are at a higher risk because they are the ones most exposed. We have made them understand that they should be more careful than boys because the risk of them having an infection is high. They need to take the lead in hygiene, they need to know that they do not have to exchange personal items and take proper care of themselves.”

The Medical Mission/Health Campaign by LECUDO USA is being done in partnership with Healing Beyond the Horizon USA, Life Bridge International USA, NWACUDO-USA, Clinique Saint-Constant, Purpose Medical Mission USA, NTECKA LAB, Menji Credit Union, Cameroon Oncology (Cancer) Center, CRID USA/Kambaii Health.

Atembeh Helen, a state nurse and member of the medical team this health talk to the students was of paramount importance since most of the students presented issues on personal hygiene after consulting. She said: "The students have taken a vital message of how to keep their environment clean and their hygiene. Though the campaign was based in the hospital, we saw that it was important to extend it to the students. The students needed this health talk as it is not all about the drugs but the health talk was also important."