"Sickness can reduce productivity and can also be a heavy burden for the government. Thus, superior human resources are those who are physically, mentally, and morally healthy and educated," he noted in Jakarta on Tuesday.
Pratikno elaborated that health screening is integral to the government's efforts to help citizens prevent chronic diseases that often go untreated from an early stage.
"Based on reports from the Ministry of Health, many deaths stem from risks that can be reduced. For instance, (the likelihood of a) heart attack can be mitigated," he remarked.
The minister highlighted that healthy people can become educated individuals who contribute actively and support the achievement of the government's targets.
Earlier, the Ministry of Health confirmed that the government's free health screening program will commence in February 2025 and that information dissemination will start in January.
Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin stated in Jakarta on Thursday (January 9) that the screening is aimed at detecting diseases that cause the most number of deaths in Indonesia, namely stroke and heart disease.
He mentioned that three health indicators will be assessed: blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels.
The health screening is planned to be conducted in 10 thousand community health centers (puskesmas) and will potentially be carried out in around 15 thousand to 20 thousand private-owned clinics to cover around 280 million people.
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Translator: Lintang Budiyanti, Raka Adji
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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