Prevention better than cure!

[DrJohnson_KolanGirne]

Hello. Firstly I would like to introduce myself. My name is Dr Johnson and I am the new British Doctor working at Kolan Hospital Girne. I am hoping to introduce some of the positives picked up from my experience working in the UK to my practice here. For example in the UK all patients over 40 should be encouarged via their GP to have a cardiovascular risk assessment. This aim is to find any potential medical problems e.g. high blood pressure, high cholesterol etc and then treat these ideally before any complications arise. All comments and suggestions welcome.

[waddo]

Welcome to you Dr Johnson. I am with you all the way. If I had not done what you are suggesting four years ago I would not be here now - well not standing and breathing anyway. It is a shock when you are feeling fit and healthy to find you have previously had a heart attack and two TIA's along with your high cholesterol and the start of Type 2 diabetes! Glad I found all that out then and have taken the necessary pills and potions to bring it all under control. How did it all happen - I got old and never realised it is the main thing - guess I am no longer invincible but I will stick with being alive and happy. Hope you enjoy your work in Cyprus, it can be fun, my own Dr Sait Keenan tells me so - lol.

[DrJohnson_KolanGirne]

Thank you Waddo for your kind welcome. So pleased to hear things are now under control for you. It is difficult because things like high blood pressure, early diabetes etc will often not have any symptoms, so how would one know they have them if they are never checked? I genuinely believe a few very simple affordable checks could save lives.

[PapaBravo]

Welcome to Cyprus Dr Johnson.

Will the Kolan be having 'discounted' Men's and Women's days to check for the ailments you mentioned?

[DrJohnson_KolanGirne]

Thank you Papa Bravo. I have negotiated a package for cardiovascular risk assessments to be carried out at Kolan Girne at a discounted price of 100TL. This would cover the costs of blood tests to enable the same cardiovascular risk assessment to be done that is done for patients in the UK and to have blood pressure and body mass index checked by the nurse. You would also see a Dr who would explain your cardiovascular risk. I should stress that this is a more of a screening and so not suitable for anyone who has known cardiovascular problems or diabetes as they may need a more thorough assessment. We will of course still be holding the men and womens health weeks which I know are appreciated by many and are more of a thorough screening for a wider number of medical problems.

[PapaBravo]

Thank You.

[nurseawful]

The cariovascular risk assessments by Dr Johnson are still available.

Chris