Edith CHUKU
As part of activities to mark this year’s annual free nationwide health service event, the Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Orbit in partnership with Port Harcourt City Valley, have held a 3-day free medical outreach.
No fewer than 300 residents and natives of Ozuboko Community in political Ward 2o, Port Harcourt Local Government Area of Rivers State, participated in the eye test screening, HIV testing and counseling, vitamin A administration, malaria screening and treatment, blood pressure/sugar screening, among others.
Also, about 60 pregnant women were given free insecticide treated mosquito nets, while over 200 children had free malaria screening and treatment, deworming among others.
The event tagged: “Rotary Family Health Day” held at Ozuboko Primary Healthcare Centre, from Tuesday to Thursday, also witnessed distribution of sanitary pads, drugs as prescribed by the head doctor, Flag Amakri.
Addressing newsmen during the outreach, the President of Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Orbit, Mrs. Anita Ogona, explained that the free medical checkups was following the harsh economic situation in the country.
She said, “we brought free medical checkups for the people of the community. We understand that due to the economic situation in Nigeria a lot of people cannot afford to go to hospitals because they are afraid of the bill that will ensue.
“We know that so many people are dying silently and not reported, so we decided to bring it to this community because we know that this place is densely populated. You can see the people here, infact, it’s like a barrack of children.
“We’ve brought the little we can do; the basic medication to give to them free. You know what rotary is all about; we try to mediate what an ordinary man cannot afford and ensure we bring it to their door step so that is what we have come to do here.”
Anita stated that, “we’ve done all manner of testing, from HIV to eye test and so on. Today is our day three, we started on Tuesday and we are rounding up today. The turnout is overwhelming and the truth is that we cannot meet everybody’s need. Yesterday we had almost 500 persons here. We don’t have a lot of doctors on ground therefore we just told more than 200 of them to go back so that we can attend to at least 300, so today we wouldn’t even attend to everybody because we have exhausted what we came with.”
The President of Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Orbit further called on members of the public, organizations to collaborate with the club to provide healthcare services to the needy in order to avert deaths resulting from curable ailments even as she assured them of accountability.
In an exclusive interview with TNN, the Charter President of Rotary Club of Port Harcourt City Valley, Chidinma Selina Diala, outlined other programmes organized by Rotary to reach out to their host communities to include, “mother and child programme, health talk seminar for pregnant women, nursing mothers, distribution of deliver kit, tree planting for the environment, skill acquisition, books donation to school pupils, career guidance and counselling.”
Speaking onbehalf of Ozuboko people, the Community Development Committee CDC, Chairman, Mr. Claudius Lord Deinma, while expressing his gratitude said “it’s not easy having voluntary service personalities coming to your community to give services for free.
“The country we find ourselves is where whatever thing you do you want to get something in return but you see people coming voluntarily to give free services to your people from their own personal pocket for that reason I am very much excited. Thank you rotary club that has made this thing possible, thank you rotary international, my people are very much excited.”
Expressing dismay that about 50 residents went home disappointed as they were not examined and treated following shortage of materials and drugs, Deinma appealed to organizations, well-meaning individuals to partner with Rotary so more less privileged, impoverished residents can gain access to medical services.
On her part, head of the healthcare centre, Dr. Flag Amakri, said “I am so happy, so delighted that Rotary Club remembered us today to carryout this free medical mission in our facility. It will help to reduce the financial burden of the community, because this period is a trial period for everyone so with these free drugs it will really relieve them. Thank you rotary club for everything you have done for us, we appreciate it.”
Some excited children and pregnant women who benefitted from the outreach took turns to appreciate Rotary Club of Port Harcourt Orbit and Rotary Club of Port Harcourt City Valley for the free medicals.
