How are you? That’s a familiar greeting, isn’t it? And the usual response is ‘I am Fine’.
Even persons on hospital beds have the same response, the visibly sick but walking about too. The overly religious ones say it is an exercise of faith to respond as such. It reminds me of what an old professor acquaintance of mine once said- Question: How are you? Answer: I have to ask my doctor.
He came to this conclusion, having realized that as a result of aging, each time he went to the hospital for a routine checkup, a new medical condition emerged that needed attention. Periodic medical checks have therefore become his second nature.
I do so too. That’s because I worked with nurses and midwives for over a decade, who unknowingly drummed home to me, the need to take good care of our bodies. I used the word ‘unknowingly’ because they did not sit me down per se to lecture me on the matter. But by observing the kinds of food they ate and eavesdropping on their conversations as well as the promptness with which they visited the hospital when unwell, I advised myself.
Regular visits to the hospital and strict adherence to my medications has brought me this far. On the other hand, I have some friends who contend that there is no need to go to the hospital when you are not ill. They claim that the doctors will frighten you by their comments on any little thing they diagnose. My friends cite a Ga proverb- Nɔni ole lɛ, egbeeebo- what you don’t know does not kill you. They ignore the other saying- ‘Prevention is better than cure’.
In 2021, I published an article on this subject titled ‘What life begins at 40 means and the roller coaster ride through 50+’. That article was prompted by the death of my elder brother and two classmates who were in their fifties. In putting together that piece, I could not lose sight of the fact that other public figures such as Komla Dumor (41), Danny Netttey (47) and Elvis Quarshie (49), died in their forties. This article, which I choose to describe as a remix, has been triggered by the death recently, of a forty-five-year-old prominent Ghanaian.
Before we proceed, here are excerpts from the original article:
“Life begins at 40 is an expression I heard growing up. Somehow, I never bothered to find out what it really means. However, with the subject of death on my mind, the expression, ‘life begins at 40’ also popped up. So, I googled to find out what it really means.
I discovered that the phrase is the brainchild of an American Psychologist, Walter Pitkin, who published a book with the title, ‘Life Begins at Forty’. The gist of the book is that, given the conditions of the world, at the time, one could look forward to many years of fulfilling and happy existence after age 40, provided that one maintained a proper, positive attitude. I repeat, proper, positive attitude.
I also found what initially seemed to be two contrasting views. First, that, it is after age 40 that one experiences rheumatism, faulty eyesight and the one that sent me cracking- the tendency to tell a story to the same person, three or four times. Second, that when one reaches age 40, life becomes better, maybe because one has skills, experiences and means necessary, for an enjoyable life.
Upon critical evaluation of the two views however, I realised that they actually do not contrast. It is really, a case of a little bit of this and a little bit of that. In other words, whether life becomes better or not, especially, the bodily aches and pains as well as the faulty eye sights, will plague you.
The advantage of having money is that you can seek the best medical care.
The roller Coaster ride through 50+
The reality is that, age is not just a number as some would have us believe. Age means the length of time that a person has lived or a thing has existed. It does not mean how good one looks at 50 or 60.
It means you are no longer that bubbly teenager or that energetic 20s dude or gal. Your shock absorbers are old and creaky. Thus, you accept it in your own interest.
A very popular Bishop-friend of mine who is with the Light House Chapel International, put it succinctly, “it’s like driving a 50-year-old car”- weak shock absorbers, difficult to close doors, damp headlights, smoky engine, dented body, broken tail-lights and cracked windscreens.”
A stich in time saves nine
This is a proverb which means “it is better to fix a problem when it is small than to wait for it to become bigger.” In medical terms, they say “early reporting saves life.”
How can you report an ailment early when you don’t know what is going on in your body? Something which can only be known after your blood, urine, faeces and or sputum samples have been examined.
The need for periodic thorough medical screening, can therefore not be overemphasized. The challenge, however, is that for those who want to undertake this life-saving step, one of two hurdles confront them- lack of time or funds.
- Lack of funds
It is general knowledge that cost of living in Ghana has quadrupled over the last couple of years. The ruling government and its spokespersons will not agree with you publicly, but behind the scenes, they acknowledge that what they spent on the basic necessities of life few years ago has more than doubled.
The costs of food, clothing and shelter have become unbearable. With the absence of an efficient, cost-effective public transportation system, lorry fare and fuel cost take away the lion’s share of one’s salary. Very little money is therefore left for a non-sick person to consider spending on medical checkup.
For a checkup on my eyes as a result of an ‘Appolo’ infection, I had to contend with GHC400.00 as Consultation Fee. The eye drops that were prescribed cost GHC200.00. When I complained, a colleague asked me why I did not use sea water. From today’s polluted sea? But if you don’t work with a human-centred organization like Media General, which ensures that your health needs are covered, thus can’t afford to part with an unplanned GHC600.00, why won’t you risk it?
Clearly, those who find the need to go to the hospital for checkups are met with huge bills for blood test, CT Scans, ECG scans, Xray, etc. Unable to afford, they abandon the idea and resort to herbal concoctions that mostly worsen their conditions and make the trip to the land of our ancestors shorter.
- Lack of time
I know persons who can afford the expensive medical bills and still have a decent balance in their bank accounts, yet the time to go see the doctor is a huge challenge. They are so busy that for as long as they are able to go about their duties, the need to go for a checkup, in their view, is unnecessary.
Once upon a time, I was in a pharmacy one bright morning when I heard the humming sound of a black sleek Toyota V8 vehicle park at the entrance. The occupant of the back seat alighted and entered the pharmacy in haste with his right palm rubbing the left side of his chest. When asked by one of the attendants how he could be helped, the ‘Big Man’ responded that he wanted to check his Blood Pressure (BP). The lady then asked him to sit for a while. The man angrily retorted ‘I don’t have time, just check it for me and let me go.’ The lady insisted that he had to wait for a while. The big man stormed out of the pharmacy in rage. The young lady’s supervisor turned to her and said, ‘let him go, if he is not feeling well but can’t have time for a BP check, let him go.’
This statement compelled me to reproach the supervisor. I told her that her statement was unfortunate. She acknowledged my concern but explained that without that little wait, the BP rate that would have been recorded by the sphygmomanometer would definitely have been high. The little wait would have enabled him calm down so that the actual rate would reflect on the machine. But.
I hope Mr. Busy arrived at his destination and is still alive somewhere.
The stress of public service
I discovered my BP status while working in the public service. Contrary to the perception that no work goes on in the public service, depending on the role one plays in which organization, the daily schedule can be stressful. So stressful that without a conscious effort at work-life balance, one could drop dead on the job.
This is likely to result because of frequent travels with consequences of jet lag, late night meetings, tight deadlines and limited hours of sleep. Besides the physical toll stress takes on the human body in terms of tiredness and inability to sleep, medical evidence exists to show that it kills. “Research shows that chronic stress is associated with such health issues as muscle tension, digestive problems, headaches, weight gain or loss, trouble sleeping, heart disease, susceptibility to cancer, high blood pressure, and stroke.”- Columbiadoctors.org
I recall that Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia had to be rushed to London for emergency medical attention barely a year (January 2018) after assuming that position. The immediate past Finance Minister, Mr Ken Ofori-Atta told us about his liver disease when tongues went wagging about his bloated face. Whether he had the ailment pre-public service or not is another matter.
The need for public service workers such as presidents, vice presidents, ministers, deputy ministers, heads of agencies and CEOs to undergo periodic medical checkup is thus, not negotiable. But do they?
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, recently became hairless and pale. It was during the period that the debate on the passage of the E-levy had reached a very critical stage. With the current status of a hung parliament, his presence was critical for a successful parliamentary proceeding. Yet he ignored all the fuss and travelled abroad to heal himself. Today, we may have to ask his doctor, but from what we can all see, he looks far better than before.
According to my colleague Evelyn Tengma of TV3 News, Speaker Bagbin was pressing home the need for members of the House to prioritise their health when news of the demise of Deputy Minister of Finance, Dr John Ampontuah Kumah broke. He was 45 years old. He left behind a wife and six children.
The last time Right Honourable Bagbin broached this topic was when the MP for Kumawu, Philip Basoah died in March last year. He was 54 years old. Forgive me, but I am unable to ignore the instance of turning number- 45 and 54. Two deaths in Parliament within one year. Also, in the month of March 2022, the MP for Ahanta West and Minister for Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Ebenezer Kojo Kum suffered a stroke at the age of 55.
My point is that this age range is very dangerous. The danger is underpinned by my findings with regard to the meaning of life begins at 40, as alluded to above. The surest way to manage the transition from an energy-full thirty-year-old, through the responsibility-filled yet disease-prone forties to fifty and beyond is to develop the habit of visiting the doctor regularly. With that, whatever health condition is developing will be identified early and nipped in the bud, or managed in a manner that enables you live to the biblical three scores and ten. If you don’t drink alcohol like President Akufo-Addo, you might hit 79 years old and still be able to stand and read a speech for 2 hours.
Mrs Lilian Kumah’s interview on poison rumours
Some have accused the widow of late Dr John Kumah of speaking publicly about his death too soon. They cite custom and tradition. Others claim she was whipped into action by the top brass of the ruling party whose reputation, per the poison rumours, seems to have been dented. The perception is that they can kill for positions.
From my perspective as a PR practitioner, I welcomed her decision to clear the air with the information that the deceased MP for Ejisu in the Ashanti Region, has been sick since August last year. My disappointment though, is that she did not tell us what disease the German doctors diagnosed him of.
As a result, although I did not hear it from the 25-minute interview of hers that I listened to, some have started another speculation- ‘blood related disease’ and ‘terminal illness’ are the terms they are using. In my opinion, she could just have told us the ailment that Johnny (as she affectionately called him) succumbed to. This would have laid the ‘poisonous theory’ to rest with her husband eternally.
Afterall, all the ailments that a 45-year-old busy, rich deputy minister can suffer from, are known- “heart disease, susceptibility to cancer, high blood pressure, and stroke.” – Columbiadoctors.org
It’s time to go
The Bible says in Hebrews 9:27, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”
Therefore, once you are a man born of woman, whether you are rich, poor or destitute, you will die one day. Unfortunately, God did not state the appointed date and time. Actually, you can be very health-conscious but a reckless driver, or natural disaster can send you to an early grave.
However, if President Akufo-Addo is turning 80 years in two weeks, yet can be this active, it means if we take good care of our bodies, we could look forward to that call to glory with gladness. That’s because we would have enjoyed every aspect of life that there is and seen our children and their children’s children grow into healthy and wealthy individuals.
Just as we take our cars for servicing and get our IT technicians to service our laptops, let’s see the hospital as the service workshop for our bodies. Indeed, Life begins at 40. So, the next time you have to answer ‘How are you?’ you may want to find out from your doctor first. Let’s be careful.
Namaste – that’s goodbye in Hindi.
Let God Lead! Follow Him directly, not through any human.
The writer is the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) Columnist of the Year- 2022. He is the author of two books whose contents share knowledge on how anyone desirous of writing like him can do so. Eric can be reached via email [email protected]