In line with its effort to fight diseases and improve the health and well-being of people, the Rotary Action Group for Reproductive, Maternal and Child Health (Rotary -RMCH) on Friday provided free medical services for the people of Gishiri, a community in the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC).
The Chief Midwife, Rotary -RMCH, Hannatu Dung explained that they were conducting the joint partners community medical outreach in Gishiri, under the “Together for Healthy Families” project in Nigeria.
According to her, “in this outreach, we do several health checks like blood pressure measurement, checking temperature and rapid test for malaria. We are also checking random blood sugar, rapid testing for Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and Syphilis. We also provide medications in line with the result of the test or the needs of the patient”.
Dung further disclosed that when any of the tests were reactive, the person is referred to the hospital so he/she can have a more confirmatory test and be attended to by the doctors in the hospital.
She listed some of the drugs being administered to include: anti-malarials, routine drugs for pregnant women, vitamin B4, multivitamins, paracetamol, amoxicillin for children and adults, among others.
The Chief Midwife also informed that they were collaborating with the Primary Health Care Board and the Area Councils.
“We also have a few partners, like the Rotary Block of Urban Abuja, have supported us with health staff to be able to work here out of their health volunteers to join heads and provide these services.
“So our desire is to engage more partners within the FCT that can pull together and work with us”, she said.
Dung however decried the poor health -seeking behavior among Nigerians adding that despite holding community dialogue quarterly to ascertain the health need of their community, some people do not show up for medical outreaches:
“So besides doing this, we do the quarterly community dialogues. Every quarter, we run like 3-4 in different communities but the challenges are that, you know, people getting to understand the need to seek for health care.
“That’s why sometimes you see we come with music, everybody now seems to ask what is happening, before they could come. And you can see some, it is happening right at their doorstep but they are adamant and would not even come.
“We have poor health -seeking behaviour and that is what we have been trying to address using the community dialogues that we do”, she said.
On her part, FCT Primary Healthcare Board Reproductive Health Coordinator, Maimuna Mikail noted that malaria was the common illness diagnosed, she therefore urged the government and the community to follow Rotary’s example of organizing frequent medical outreaches:
“If the government can take ownership, or if the community too can help in taking ownership it would be good, because the Rotary cannot be here forever. At a point they might go or change location.
So if the community with Area Council and the state can take ownership, it’s better. So at least once in a while they come to the community, check their health, their predominant health issues and try to see how they can address it”, she said.
A Gishiri resident and beneficiary of the outreach, Ms Favor Miriam praised Rotary’s gesture and thanked them for saving lives.
“I came first, registered my name, they gave me a number, I went for a test, me and my little baby. After the test, I saw a consultant, she wrote the name of the drugs to give me and I got the drugs, free. We really appreciate their efforts, We pray that they will do more and more to save our people because we really need it”, she said.
