Osteoporosis is a disease that receives serious attention in Indonesia. According to data from the International Osteoporosis Foundation, more than 30% of women worldwide are at risk of bone fractures due to osteoporosis, even approaching 40%. Meanwhile, in men, the risk is 13%. The incidence of fractures due to osteoporosis worldwide has reached 1.7 million people and it is estimated that this figure will continue to increase until it reaches 6.3 million people in 2050.
Apart from causing bone and joint disorders, osteoporosis can interfere with human activities, including pain, impaired mobility, increased risk of falls and bone fractures, as well as impaired ability or inability to carry out daily activities. For this reason, efforts are needed to increase public knowledge and awareness of bone and joint health. Based on concern for this, the Faculty of Nursing (FIK) Universitas Indonesia (UI) through the Department of Medical Surgical Nursing (KMB) held community service activities (pengmas) in the form of education and health checks with the theme “Healthy Bones, Strong Body, Useful Life” at Tebet Ecopark, South Jakarta.
FIK UI Research, Publication and Community Service Manager Sri Yona, S.Kp., MN., PhD in her opening speech said, “FIK UI always tries to continue to be present in the community in its concern for bone and joint health. Through this activity, it is hoped that multi-sector awareness will be formed not only from society, but also industry and companies as a form of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).” The FIK UI Community Service Team consisted of lecturers from the KMB Department and FIK UI students from the Regular Bachelor’s Program, Master’s Degree in KMB, and KMB Specialists.
This community service activity was attended by 155 participants from various age ranges. The average age of the participants was 53.47 years, the youngest participant was 19 years old, and the oldest was 77 years old. The event began with joint and bone health exercises, then continued with a healthy talk regarding the importance of having strong bones delivered by Yulia, SKp., MN., PhD. In this session, bone structure and the minerals that make up bones are explained. Reduced levels of minerals that make up bones can cause various bone health problems, one of which is osteoporosis.
Apart from this explanation, myths and facts about bone health were also discussed, which were conveyed directly by the head of the activity, Dr. Debie Dahlia, SKp., MHSM. Through her presentation, Dr. Debie said, “Osteoporosis is a bone health problem that often occurs with increasing age, but osteoporosis is not a normal part of aging. A healthy lifestyle can prevent or delay the occurrence of osteoporosis.”
Furthermore, although women have a higher risk of osteoporosis, especially after menopause, men can also develop osteoporosis. In men, the decline in bone density usually begins more slowly than in women, but after the age of 65 – 70 years, the rate of decline in men’s bone density will be similar to that of women.
Meanwhile, apart from providing health education through healthy talks, health checks are also carried out, such as checking blood pressure, blood sugar levels, uric acid and bone density checks. For participants who experience health problems or abnormal examination results, a consultation table is also provided to get solutions from health experts regarding the health problems they are experiencing.
Based on the results of the health examination, the average bone mineral density value was -0.8. This value is included in the normal category for adults. A similar thing was also found in the results of checking blood sugar levels, the majority of participants had blood sugar values within the normal range (mean blood sugar level of participants was 119.28 mg/dl). In contrast to the results of examinations of bone density and blood sugar which were in the normal category, the uric acid levels examination results obtained an average of 7.48 mg/dl, where this value was included in the high category for both men and women.
Dean of FIK UI Agus Setiawan, SKp., MN., DN., hoped that through the activities held on Saturday (11/11), people can raise awareness about living a healthy lifestyle. Apart from that, carrying out regular health check-ups is also a preventive measure in improving health status.
“FIK is committed to always being present in society, not only among people who have health problems, but also healthy people who are at risk of having bone and joint health problems. This is in line with the vision and mission of FIK UI, namely organizing Three Principles of Higher Education activities that are of quality and relevant to the challenges of developing national and global health and nursing services,” said Agus.
Author: FIK Public Relations | Editor: Maudisha AR
