Not less than 200 persons with different health challenges received free medical treatment yesterday at Ezzaofu Ezzainyimagu Primary Health Centre in Izzi Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
The free medical outreach was organised by the Abby Cares Foundation in partnership with the Izzi Medical Doctors Forum, IMDF for the Ebonyi people.
Speaking with journalists, the President of Izzi Medical Doctors Forum, IMF, Dr Chukwuemeka Ovuoba Mbam said that three surgeons performed the surgeries on 15 hernia patients who were suffering from inguinal hernias, lipomas, and hydroceles respectively.
He disclosed that other members of the medical team attended to more than 2,000 persons including children, pregnant women, adult males and females with cases of hypertension, diabetes, malaria, peptic ulcer disease, subacute appendicitis, elephantiasis, helminthiasis and everybody present was dewormed.
He explained that a critical case of juvenile diabetes was referred to the nearest general hospital in the state because he needed insulin.
Dr Ovuoba said that eyeglasses were issued to those who needed them, some received eye drops while others were booked for eye operations another day in Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital Abkaliki, AEFUTHA.
The President said that arrangements are on top gear to take up more surgeries at a later date, noting that 15 medical doctors were brought into the community for free medical treatment.
He disclosed that some of the under-aged girls in the community who got pregnant and went out of school would be rehabilitated and taken back to school with their children taken care of by the Abby Care Foundation and the Izzi Medical Forum.
Also speaking, the Executive Director of the Abby Care Foundation, Mrs. Ijeoma Nneka Nwankwo said the outreach was to breach the gap in rural communities by bringing medical treatment, and medicine to the people who need it the most.
She disclosed that there are lots of medical issues in the community which also prompted her to offer free medical treatment to the people, and that the medical organisation were further going to replicate the outreach at Amagu Primary Health Care Center in another L.G.A, Ezza South as soon as possible.
“What we are doing is providing different medical diagnoses and treatments in the areas of paediatrics and orthomology. So, we are doing eye exams; treating glaucoma and prescribing glasses. We are also doing sugar tests high blood pressure monitoring and medications
“We have different areas of medicine in this free medical outreach. We have gynaecology, paediatrics, general medicine and surgery. We have done hernia surgeries here today. I studied diseases; and cases of diseases and I implemented control measures in disease findings.
“I have been in this community for the past ten years. So, I see the need for this free medical outreach. For instance, there are lots of hernia cases. Whenever you come around, you hear hernia! Hernia!! Hernia!!! So, I feel that it is very necessary to look into it.
“Other persons like the pregnant women in this village don’t tend to go to ante-natal most of the time. So, there is a need for free medical outreach.
“In terms of paediatrics, I have seen cases of childhood diabetes. We have a case in this medical outreach that is very critical that we are referring to the general hospital because the patient needs insulin and it’s a child. It’s a child of 10 years. So, there are a lot of medical issues within the community and that’s why we are here.
One of the beneficiaries of the medical outreach, Donatus Nwaezoke who suffered a peptic ulcer that nearly claimed his life, commended the foundation for coming to his rescue
“I have been having severe stomach pains for months. I also feel the pains close to my heart and it's as if I have wounds in the heart. I came to this health centre where a foundation is doing free medical treatment and got treated. They gave me injections and some other drugs as you can see which have resuscitated me because I have almost died. I couldn’t walk again. But after the injection, I came back to life.
“I thank the organizers of this medical outreach for saving my life. I was not speaking well before but you can see now that I am speaking well, I am getting better. The drugs they gave me are so strong, very good. With these drugs, I would have been a dead person by now.
“This month is complete three months that I have been passing through these severe pains. I have not been able to care for myself because I can’t go out to do anything, I can’t even stand up. But with the treatment I was given which has saved me, I will soon start going to look for what to eat”.
Another beneficiary, Ovuoba Wilfred who has an eye problem, said “I have an eye problem, I can’t read more than one hour. If I want to start reading, my eyes will start disturbing me, tears will be dropping from my eyes. I came for this free medical treatment and requested that they give me eye drops which I will be using for my eyes but they refused. They said they would give me eyeglasses. I believe that these eyeglasses they gave me will solve my eye problem.
“I want to commend the organizers of this free medical outreach. Many people in this community are sick and have not been going to the hospital for treatment but the organizers of this free medical outreach have brought free "medical treatment to our doorstep.”
Victor Nwegede.
