NCDs account for half of hospital admissions and deaths yet receive only three per cent of the health budget. The Ministry of Health and all health-related agencies should prioritise the management of NCDs through building a resilient supply chain of quality essential NCD medicines and continuous healthcare worker training on NCD-prioritised triaging.
Patients living with NCDs have been put on the back burner as Covid-19 patients are prioritised. Yet every day we bury people who die to complications of cancer, diabetes, heart, kidney, sickle cell, stroke, mental health disorders and other NCDs. These deaths are due to disrupted access to healthcare, including higher susceptibility to and fear of Covid-19.
