With an increasing number of Jamaicans being affected by and dying from non-communicable diseases, the Government is to embark on an ambitious “KnowYourNumbers” initiative which will focus on getting Jamaicans to screen at least once per year in order to know their health status and what they need to do to modify their behaviour to reduce illness and premature death.

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton announced the programme on Wednesday as he made his contribution to the 2023/24 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives.

“Our target is to get 500,000 screening tests done this year (2023/24). This is to provide Jamaicans with the opportunity to know what they are vulnerable to and what they need to do to correct this through lifestyle changes,” Tufton said.

He said this will be achieved by bolstering offerings of health checks and promoting health screening in hospitals and clinics across the country.

“Screening will become a routine operating procedure through our primary reform programme, in particular our life-stage approach. This means, once you enter a facility for any concern or examination, you will be provided with a health screening,” Tufton explained.

He said the health and wellness ministry, through the regional health authorities, will repurpose mobile units used in COVID-19 service delivery to offer mobile screening services to the community, place of work, and recreation areas.

“We will partner with community leaders and civic groups. We will plan and execute community outreach to support screening, targeting the most vulnerable populations in Jamaica,” the minister said while describing the KnownYourNumbers initiative as “a practical response to the biggest health crisis we face today, lifestyle diseases and premature mortality”. According to Tufton, “too many Jamaicans are walking sick people because they do not know their health status”.

He presented statistics that show that an estimated 236,000 people, or nine per cent of the population have diabetes and only 106,000 or 45 per cent are aware of their status.

“Furthermore, 95,030 have one or more complications related to diabetes. These complications include amputation, chronic kidney disease, and heart attack,” Tufton pointed out.

He shared that approximately 679,000 or a quarter of all Jamaicans have hypertension with only 377,000 or 54 per cent knowing their status.

“Over 300,000 do not know their status. These statistics are alarming as knowing your basic health information is a critical first step in taking personal responsibility for health,” Tufton said.

He said Jamaicans should be aware of the blood pressure and blood sugar numbers as well as their body mass index and their HIV status. He said these are questions to which every Jamaican must have an answer.

Tufton also pointed out that an estimated 75 per cent of Jamaicans could avoid a stroke if they were aware of the warning signs through screening, and by taking corrective action.

He also painted an alarming picture of an increasing number of Jamaicans dying prematurely.

Said Tufton: “When we analysed the deaths occurring in persons before their 75th birthday, we found that 12,747 (59 per cent) of persons died early in 2020. This represents 296,578 years of potential life lost in 2020, a 19 per cent increase in the potential years of life lost or 57,645 more years lost in one year compared to a decade ago (2011). This analysis revealed that Jamaicans are dying younger”.

The health and wellness minister said that in 2020, NCD deaths were the cause of 144,853 potential years of life lost, representing a 30 per cent increase in potential years of life lost or 33,775 more years lost per year in a decade.

“This rate of increase for persons dying from NCDs was greater than from all causes (30 per cent increase for NCDs compared to 19 per cent for all causes). Another measure of early deaths or premature mortality for NCDs is the ‘unconditional probability of death between ages 30 and 70 years from cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and chronic respiratory disease, and was estimated to be 14 per cent in the Region of the Americas in 2019. In Jamaica, the unconditional probability of death between ages 30 and 70 years from cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and chronic respiratory disease premature mortality increased by 24 per cent from 17 per cent in 2009 to 21 per cent in 2020,” Tufton said.

He lamented that “with all the worrying and profound conclusions drawn from this data analysis, the high prevalence of NCDs and risk factors; there is a low prevalence of health-seeking behaviors in our society. This is a major burden for public health. The implications are far-reaching on cost of care, economic productivity, well-being, and happiness and contentment,” he said.

And Tufton pointed out that in 2017 one in three (33 per cent) women aged 15 years and older never had a pap smear, while greater than two-thirds of women never had a mammogram. He said only 28.2 per cent of Jamaican men aged 40 years and older had ever done a digital rectal examination.

In a study exploring the health- seeking behavior of older males it was found that two-thirds (67 per cent) of participants had not visited a doctor or health facility in the last year and only 35 per cent of participants had ever done a prostate exam.

Tufton highlighted that it is estimated that the global cost of premature death is US$5.9 trillion.

“This is due to the loss of potential economic contributions by individuals who regrettably leave us before they can fully return the investments that they and the society have made to their development,” he noted.