Health : Women Care About Numbers

Blood pressure is the term used to describe the strength with which blood pushes on the sides of the arteries as it's pumped around the body. Most women in the market are conscious about their health and are determined to always check their BP whenever the opportunity shows up. “I am the cornerstone of my family, and I do my best to stay healthy so I will be able to provide for my family and take care of my children. The health of my husband and children is tied on me as such I have to stay healthy. I take my BP every two days here in the market and once it is abnormal I rush to the hospital”, words of Marie Nonos a lady who sells vegetables in the Missoke market in Douala.
She is just one of the many women who take their BP while in the market whenever Bridget Sanjep passes by. Bridget is always in the market with her BP monitor kit to take the pressure of women daily. A client pays CFA 200 for each check. She told CT that she received training when her mother was sick and when her elder siblings bought the BP monitor for her she was trained on how to take her pressure daily. “ I use to take her BP at times twice a day and a had a paper that I was writing the readings and when it is elevated I report to the nurse that was taking care of her or I rushed her to the hospital immediately. I did this for over five years and I learned how to do the test well”, Bridget Sanjep explained. She said with her experience she decided to earn her living from the activity. She added that the only way to know if someone has a high BP or hypertension is to have a blood pressure te...