In commemoration of World Press Freedom Day that took place in early May, the Port Moresby General Hospital (PMGH) in partnership with Moni Plus, hosted a free basic medical check event specifically for media personnel.
The gathering, held on Friday, May 29th, brought together journalists, producers, and reporters from several media houses, including the National Broadcasting Service (NBC), EMTV, TVWAN, the Sunday Bulletin, the Post-Courier, and The National and PNGFM Limited.
Attendees had access to multiple stations set up to check vital signs like blood pressure and Body Mass Index, alongside dedicated booths for mental health, dental checks, and eye, ear, nose, and throat examinations.
For any participant found with a serious condition, the hospital provided the option for an immediate medical referral on the spot.
During the event, trainee cardiologist Dr. Mallen delivered a serious health talk focused on cardiovascular, cerebral vascular, and peripheral artery diseases, revealing that three to four patients are admitted with strokes every single day.
He explained that Papua New Guinea is currently battling both communicable and non-communicable diseases, with cardiovascular disease remaining the leading cause of death globally.
Dr. Mallen drew a sharp contrast between older generations of Papua New Guineans, who smoked heavily and chewed betelnut but rarely suffered from heart conditions, and the current generation, attributing the rise in modern heart issues directly to changing behavioral and environmental factors.
“Most cardiovascular diseases are preventable if we address behavioral and environmental factors like tobacco use and betelnut chewing,” Dr. Mallen warned.
“Many people are unaware that plaque is slowly building up in their arteries. Betelnut-induced heart attacks are becoming common now, but these are behavioral choices we can modify.”
“Prevention is better than cure. It is far safer and more cost-effective to stop a problem from happening than to repair damage that has already occurred.”
Representing the ear, nose, and throat (ENT) department, Dr. Osiat Baining spoke about the severe burden of head, mouth, and neck cancers in the country, which rank alongside breast and cervical cancers as major health crises.
He shared a staggering statistic regarding the country’s healthcare capacity, noting that PNG has only thirteen ENT specialists in total, twelve of whom were trained locally to serve a population of over 10 million people.
Highlighting the severe shortage, he noted that, “The global standard states that there should be one ENT specialist for 40, 000 residents in a given population.
For PNG, it is one specialist is to seven hundred and eighty-three thousand.”
Dr. Baining urged the audience to imagine the immense pressure these few specialists face, sharing that he receives daily messages from anxious patients waiting for surgeries.
He expressed how heartbreaking it is to tell them to wait due to a lack of capacity, knowing that while patients sit on a waiting list, their cancers often progress and lead to death.
To combat these challenges, Dr. Baining thanked the media for attending and stressed how vital public screening and media coverage are for keeping the population informed.
The media personnel have been encouraged to listen to their bodies and prioritize their personal health amid busy work schedules, while reinforcing the crucial responsibility of the media to educate and inform the public on these critical health issues.
