Teachers in the pre-tertiary schools have been urged to take their health seriously to prevent terminal illness.
According to the Municipal Education Director for La Dade-Kotopon Municipality (LaDMA), Habiba Kotomah, it was important that teachers cultivated a regular routine of checkups in order to identify and deal with ailments quickly.
“Every teacher must take their self-care seriously as a vehicle to avert emerging illness before it gets to its critical stage,” she said.
Ms Kotomah made the call on Friday at the opening ceremony of the teacher’s fun games event held at Burma Camp in Accra.
The maiden event which involved all teachers in the municipality was on the theme: “unity in diversity through sports and healthy living” aimed at educating and motivating teachers on the need to de-stressed themselves after several hours and days of work so they stay healthy to be able to discharge their duties effectively.
Addressing the gathering, Mrs Kotomah noted that the demanding nature of the teaching profession often left little room for self-care and well-being.
According to the Education Director, every teacher above the age of 40 must make it a point to visit the doctor twice a year for checkups.
“If you are a teacher and you are above 40, then you must see the doctor regularly at least twice a year for checkup to enable you as a teacher to know your health status and to take the appropriate steps” she said.
Even though the Director did not give any figure, she indicated that a lot of teachers these days are suffering from mental illness, body and other chronic diseases that either too could have been prevented if they are a little bit careful and paid attention to their health.
Mrs Kotomah indicated that teachers were not active due to stress accumulated from work which can bring down the productivity level at work and can affects teaching and learning in class.
She expressed her wish to have the event replicate in the circuit levels as well and also encouraged other heads in the districts, to emulate the idea of encouraging the teachers to reduce stress.
The Regional Director of Education, Hajia Katumi Natagmah Atta (Mrs) said sports provides the platform to interact and get to share ideas, challenges and also seek the way forward to every situation.
According to Hajia Atta (Mrs), teachers must prioritise healthy life styles due to the mountainous challenges they go through as teachers in schools and parents at home with no space and time to reduce stress.
“Exercise is good for the health and wellbeing of all workers because each of us leaves home early and come back late and even weekends most of us attend funerals, weddings, church programmes with no time for ourselves and the family” she said.
The Physical and Sports Education Coordinator for LaDMA, Seth Nii Nettey, explained that we want the teachers to incorporate the habits of exercising regularly to the pupils they teach in the classroom so it can be part of their up bringing.
Mr Nettey said food in-take, consistent exercises and good stress management must form a habit of every teacher’s healthy life style due to the pivotal roles these three plays in the existence.
The activities lined up for the celebration were categorised into competitive and non-competitive disciplines with football, volleyball, netball, table tennis, tag of peace and 50 and 100-meter dash being part of the discipline’s participants would be competing in.
The non-competitive event were cards, owari, scrabble, ludu, drafts, jama with dancing, eating, pillow fight, aerobics, crocodile pond and food mines.
BY VICTOR A. BUXTON
