CERMES Foundation, a non-governmental organisation focused on education and health, has organised a health talk for more than 400 pupils of Old Lashibi Basic School in the Tema West Municipality under its ‘Let’s Talk Health’ programme.
The outreach, which is the first in a series planned for 2026, focused on the prevention of communicable diseases among children, setting the tone for a year of health education activities across selected basic schools.
Miss Magdalene Arthur-Moses, a Physician Assistant at Shalom Medical Centre, Afienya, who facilitated the session, explained that children could fall ill as many as seven to eight times a year.
She clarified, however, that frequent illness in children was not necessarily a sign of weakness, but rather because their immune systems were still developing.
“In school environments where close contact is constant, conditions for infection are almost always present. That is why intentional preventive habits are very important,” she said.
Miss Arthur-Moses guided the pupils through practical steps to reduce infection risks, including maintaining proper personal hygiene, eating nutritious and uncontaminated meals, and reporting early when they feel unwell.
She emphasised that simple, consistent daily actions could significantly reduce the spread of preventable illnesses.
One of the most engaging moments of the session was the introduction of a short rhyme to reinforce proper coughing etiquette: “If I want to cough, I use my handkerchief, I use my nose mask, or I cough into my hands.”
Ms Ernestina Antwi-Boasiako, the Administrator of CERMES Foundation, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that thousands of children missed school annually because of preventable illnesses, leading to learning setbacks and financial strain on families.
“Communicable diseases spread quickly in schools where hundreds of pupils share the same spaces daily. The solution — knowledge and consistent practice — is often simpler than people realise,” she said.
She explained that the ‘Let’s Talk Health’ programme was built on the belief that preventive healthcare was not a privilege but a right every child deserved, regardless of background.
She said reaching children directly was critical because the information shared in classrooms often extended to homes and communities.
Every habit reinforced had the potential to travel beyond the school gates into households and communities, she added.
Ms Antwi-Boasiako added that by delivering preventive health education at the basic school level, the Foundation was making a long-term investment in a healthier and more informed generation.