Canadian Specialist Hospital celebrates motherhood

In celebration of Mother’s Day, Canadian Specialist Hospital (CSH), one of the largest private hospitals in Dubai catering to the tertiary health care needs of the Middle East, held a health awareness event for mothers from various walks of life. The hospital organized an informational and engaging interaction with various specialists and free health examinations at their premises in Deira. 

Mothers from different communities attended the event and took advantage of a personal interaction with Dr. Zainab Ismail, Specialist Gynaecologist, and Dr. Nabeela Shafqat, Clinical Nutritionist, while benefiting from a free BMI checkup and basic breast examination. 

The main issue addressed by Dr. Zainab Ismail was cervical cancer, the second most common cause of death for women worldwide. “We see a great amount of awareness activities around breast cancer, but cervical cancer is spreading at an equal rate. Around 750 women each day die from cervical cancer around the world and there is a need to create awareness among the women in UAE to get regular check-ups. Women in the age group of 25 to 65 years should get a Pap smear test every two years in order to prevent this deadly disease. If detected early, cervical cancer is almost 100% curable. For the younger women, vaccinations provide protection against cervical cancer. Additionally, women also need to modify their lifestyle and switch to healthy eating habits”, said Dr. Ismail. 

Dr. Nabeela Shafqat focused on the necessity of healthy eating in order to keep up with the demanding role of being a mother. “In today’s competitive and dynamic culture, working mothers and home-makers go through a great deal of stress while multi-tasking their various roles. Mothers often worry more about their children than they do about their own well-being. A healthy and balanced diet can help reduce stress and prevent several chronic diseases such as osteoporosis, iron-deficiency anemia, diabetes, cholesterol, blood pressure, and others. Fruits and vegetables, whole-grains and bread, eggs, meat or beans, milk and dairy foods are all essential components of a mother’s diet. Mothers must pay special attention to what they eat for breakfast as it determines their productivity for rest of the day”, said Dr. Shafqat. 

The event proved to be useful and instructive for nursing mothers, mothers-to-be, and mothers of adult children alike. The platform gave them an opportunity to interact with the doctors on an informal basis and share their doubts and experiences, while stressing on the requisite of regular screening, self-examination, causes and preventive measures for various health issues. The objective of giving mothers a day to think about their own well-being first was well realized.