Mosese Raqio 
[file photo]
Fiji’s diabetes burden, one of the highest in the world, continues to leave a trail of preventable pain, and at the heart of it are the people whose lives change in a matter of hours.
Surgical Registrar at CWM Hospital, Dr Ana Tugia says, while exact data is not always available, the reality on the ground is confronting.
She says analytically, they do a minimum of five amputations a day, adding that these include toe, below-knee and above-knee amputations.
Dr Tugia says according to ministry research, Fiji currently records one lower-limb amputation every eight hours, and the numbers, the clinician notes, are rising.
She says behind every statistic is someone’s parent, child, neighbour, or workmate, and many of them never knew they had diabetes in the first place.
She adds that a 2021 study revealed that 70 percent of patients who come in for surgical intervention discover they have diabetes only after developing a diabetic foot complication.
Dr. Tugia says this late diagnosis often means the disease has already caused irreversible damage.
“We still have a lot of challenges in terms of service delivery, but we’re quite fortunate to be working with a multidisciplinary team that looks after, you know, the kidneys, sugar control, the diabetic hub, physiotherapists that come on board.”
Despite the pressures, Dr Tugia says the goal remains constant, and that is to prevent complications, preserve limbs where possible, and give patients the dignity and support they deserve.
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