By Mary Donatus (Correspondent, Bauchi)
About 3,000 Bauchi residents are to benefit from free medical treatment organized by the wife of the President, Aisha Buhari, under her pet project, “Future Assured.”
Flagging off the medical outreach at the Specialist Hospital in Bauchi on Thursday, Aisha said that the outreach’s target was to screen and treat about 3,000 people and to create creating awareness for diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and eye ailments as well as deworming children.
Aisha Buhari, who was represented by the North East Coordinator of Future Assured, Zuwaira Gambo, said the initiative was aimed at complementing government’s efforts to provide health care for the populace and expressed optimism that the screening will improve the health status of the people of the state, as well as serve as a reminder on the need for regular medical checkups.
She said the outreach was carried out in collaboration with the Bauchi State ministry of health and the wife of the Governor, Hajiya Hadiza Mohammed, and assured that the outreach would offer free medication for the treatment of some of the ailments screened for and give eye glasses to adults who needed them.
“Deworming of children is also part of the event. Vitamin C tablets will be given out to the children while toothbrushes and toothpaste will also be given to them to encourage dental hygiene”
“As part of the event marking the outreach, we donated 2,000 assorted drugs to some selected schools in the state and have sensitized residents on the importance of turning out for this medical outreach” she said.
The Permanent Secretary of the State Ministry of Health, Saidu Aliyu Gital, described the turnout for the outreach as very impressive, saying that the programme was going well as planned without any hitches.
He said a total of 160 medical personnel for the programme were on ground to attend to patients and urged the people of the State to take advantage of the programme which was at no cost to them and take better care of their health.