Insurer urges better care for sickle cell patients

AXA Mansard Insurance Plc joined the world to observe the recently concluded World Sickle Cell Day, which is marked to sustain awareness on sickle cell at national and international level.
 
The United Nations General Assembly, on December 22, 2008, had adopted a resolution that recognizes sickle cell disease as a public health problem and one of the worlds foremost genetic diseases. But the Chief Operating Officer of AXA Mansard Health Limited, Tokunbo Alli, said since there is still no sure way to cure the sickle cell disorder, “we must therefore, not weaken in our resolve to create awareness about the disorder and its causes.”
 
Sickle cell disorders causes one’s normally round and flexible blood cells to become stiff and sickle shaped, stopping the blood cells, and the oxygen they carry, from being able to move freely around the body leading to several episodes of severe pain. These painful episodes are referred to as sickle cell crisis. They are treated with strong painkillers such as morphine to control the pain. Alli concluded that at AXA Mansard, “we remain at the forefront of health maintenance and continue to strive towards making a difference in the lives of people as we join in the fight against sickle cell.”