Consultants on the employment of the Hospital Management Board, HMB, in the Delta State Ministry of Health have commenced another round of one-week free medical treatments in the state.
The specialist doctors, under the aegis “Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria, MDCAN, Delta State HMB Chapter”, at the flag off of the second phase of the programme, said the free medical outreach, which is taking at the Central Hospital Ughelli, in Ughelli North Local Government Area, will end on Friday, November 4, 2022.
Chairman of the Delta State Chapter of MDCAN, Dr Francis Nwabua, a Consultant Obstetrician and Gynecologist, said the free medical outreach started in Agbor Medical Zone, disclosing that Ughelli Medical Zone was the second and that the programme would hold every quarter until all the nine Medical Zones in the state were covered.
Nwabua explained that the free medical treatment was targeted mostly at indigent and non-registered contributory health scheme citizens in the State, saying that the exercise would encourage those yet to register to do so and get Specialists medicare in government hospitals across the State.
While noting that the turnout of those with health needs on the first day of the programme in Ughelli underscored the importance of the free medical outreach, Dr Nwabua commended his colleagues for committing their time, expertise and money to serve God and humanity.
He said, “Today is the first day of the free medical treatment programme, organised by the Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria, MDCAN, Delta State Hospitalist Management Board Chapter. Over ten patients have before 12noon under-go surgical operation for fibroid, orthopaedics, ovarian cyst, Cataract, Cleft lip, amongst others.
“Some patients had their eyes checked and screened for operation all for free. Free medical treatment is our own way of giving back to society and further touching lives positively by giving people good health. MDCAN is made up of specialists in different medical fields. Members are out to render free treatment of various kinds to society. Even in doing that I will also use the opportunity to again call on Deltans to key into the Delta state government health insurance health scheme”, Dr Nwabua emphasized.
The State Chairman of MDCAN restated government’s commitment towards the health needs of the people and expressed happiness that the Okowa administration was not relenting in that regard.
The State Director of Medical Services, Hospital Management Board, Dr Paul Okubor, said it is worthy of note for Specialist Doctors in HMB to have initiated the Free Medical Outreach and called on residents with health challenges to avail themselves of the opportunity provided by MDCAN.
Okubor commended members of the Delta State branch of the Medical and Dental Association of Nigeria for putting resources together for the free medicare, saying that the humanitarian gesture had added great value to the health programmes of the State government.
“The free medical treatment featuring free surgical operations including fibroid, Orthopedics, Ovarian Cyst, Cataract, Cleft Lip, Palate, Hernia, Appendix amongst others, as well as free consultation, is highly commendable. There is the need at all times to support government policies and programmes in the health sector, especially in its determination to bring quality healthcare to the doorsteps of Deltans”, Dr Okubor stated.
Also speaking, the Chairman Ughelli South Local Government Council, Dr Richard Kofi, appreciated the good gesture of MDCAN, Delta HMB chapter, saying that the move has no doubt saved families the cost of major operations.
Kofi called on Deltans to key into the State Insurance Health Scheme created by Dr Ifeanyi Okowa’s administration to ease the cost of health delivery to the people.
For their part, beneficiaries of the free health programme paid glowing tributes to the Specialist Doctors in the Delta State Hospital Management Board for reaching out to residents with health needs.
Some families whose family members benefited from the free surgical operations and other free medical treatment thanked the association for wiping tears from their eyes with the programme.
They explained that the association has saved them the pains of surgery and treatment that would have cost hundreds of thousands of naira.
The one-week free medical outreach involved specialist consultations and surgeries in various medical disciplines, including eye and teeth care, major and minor surgeries such as removal of uterine fibroid, ovarian cysts, cataracts, cleft lip, palate, appendix and repairs of hernias, amongst others will end on Friday 4th November 2022.
As part of the programme, members of the association led by its Chairman, Dr Francis Nwabua were at the Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs camp, Ughelli to present drugs and other items to the victims.
