Nearly 5,000 people were screened for diabetes both in the run-up to and during the holy month of Ramadan this year by Action on Diabetes (AoD), a public-private partnership initiated and funded by Maersk Oil Qatar.
The campaign saw AoD partner with a number of leading organisations across Qatar to run activities and initiatives that screened people for diabetes and offered advice on healthy lifestyles and safe fasting for people living with diabetes.
This is the third consecutive campaign run by AoD during the holy month.
Activities this year included pre-Ramadan awareness raising diabetes workshops organised in partnership with Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) and Qatar Diabetes Association, five days of screenings at leading supermarket Al Meera, which saw more than 2,500 people tested for diabetes, and two mosque screenings that took place following Friday prayers.
Action on Diabetes’ mosque screenings, in partnership with HMC, saw a total of more than 2,000 people screened at the Grand Mosque in Doha, which took place on June 26 and July 10.
Following Friday prayers, screening booths staffed by trained diabetes nurses and educators were set up to allow worshippers to get screened and receive a personalised analysis of results. They also got advice and recommendations from trained diabetes educators on how to fast safely during Ramadan and reduce the risk of developing diabetes in the future.
Commenting on the campaign’s success, Ahmed al-Kuwari, technical liaison manager at Maersk Oil Qatar, said: “We are very proud of the success that the Action on Diabetes Ramadan awareness campaign has achieved this year. It is incredibly rewarding to support an initiative that is working every day to implement change within our community and encourage healthier lifestyles.”
The Ramadan awareness campaign also saw AoD team up with Al Meera for a second year to screen shoppers for diabetes during the busy pre-Ramadan rush. The partnership saw more than 2,500 people screened at AoD screening booths that were set up at three of Al Meera’s stores – Airport, Mansoura and Muraikh – for five days in the run-up to Ramadan.
The booths screened shoppers for diabetes and offered advice on healthy eating, healthy lifestyles and safe fasting for people with diabetes.
Herluf Nis Thomsen, senior project manager at AoD, said: “We are extremely grateful for the support from all our partners, which has allowed us to complete another incredibly successful diabetes awareness campaign this Ramadan. At Action on Diabetes, we are dedicated to raising awareness of the risks associated with diabetes.”