The quiet revolution
Meet Benjamin Olorunfemi, a 49 year old former security expert turned public healthcare warrior in Oyo, Nigeria, who is on a mission to expand health literacy and raise awareness around hypertension, the 'silent killer' that threatens the lives of over 66 million Nigerians.
Benjamin studied banking and finance and was working as a security expert for a private firm in July 2016, when he suddenly developed strong headaches, body weakness and a rocketing heartrate. He tried self-medicating, but his condition worsened. Thanks to the timely intervention of work colleagues, Benjamin was rushed to hospital and diagnosed with Stage 3 Hypertension. He got lucky: the disease, when left unchecked, often kills people in their prime.
While recovering, Benjamin was unable to shake one question: “Why did I not know about this?” Scrolling through online articles and medical journals he discovered that millions of Nigerians were living with hypertension, either unaware of the serious implications or unable to access proper treatment. Realising that early detection and intervention were key to saving lives, Benjamin made it his mission to fill the gap in the healthcare system.
In 2017 he founded the non-profit Rays of Hope Support Initiative (ROHSI) to raise awareness about hypertension and other non-communicable diseases like diabetes. He launched with a Facebook post asking for volunteers and received responses from a pharmacist and three medical doctors who are now part of his 19-person team. In August 2017 ROHSI held its first community outreach program and over the past four years, the organisation has educated over 10,000 people, across six communities, including free screenings, health advice and medication for 3,000 people.
Benjamin hopes to eventually build a medical centre that will allow people to access free healthcare services and is passionate about creating a more proactive approach to health, especially within rural communities.
"People's attitude towards their health is poor in our part of the world. Unless people are very sick, they don't care about going for medical check-ups. But we all know there are significant health and economic gains attached to early detection and good control of ailments like hypertension rather than treating the complications.”
