Zamfara Gov’t Commences Monthly Medical Outreach Programme

The Zamfara State Government has recently begun a special modified monthly medical outreach programme that is focused on addressing critical healthcare needs as well as improving the quality of life of the people.

The first phase of the medical outreach, in collaboration with the office of the First Lady of Zamfara State, Hajiya Huriyya Dauda Lawal, is set to provide free medical services to people with cases that require cataract extraction, swollen groin (hernia and hydrocele), vesicovaginal fistula (VVF) repairs, and health education.

A statement signed by the spokesperson to the governor, Sulaiman Bala Idris, on Sunday, stated that the modified medical outreach, which kicked off last Friday, has treated 81 cases of eye cataracts and 49 cases of swollen groin.

He added that the special outreach is designed to cover 1,000 patients with swollen groins, 200 vesicovaginal fistula repairs (VVF), and 1,000 patients with eye cataracts every month.

The statement reads in parts: “The Zamfara State Government set up a committee of experts that conducted assessments of various service centres in the state to identify the most common surgical problems prevalent in the general population.

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“Based on its findings, the committee identified cataract extraction, swollen groin (hernia, hydrocele), vesicovaginal fistula (VVF) repairs, and health education as the initial areas of intervention for the first year of the programme.

“This is first-of-its-kind in the history of Zamfara, that the state government is engaging in a free medical outreach that covers such critical areas. The ongoing outreach utilises tele-screening for patients from rural and semi-urban areas to provide specialist care to the needy.

“A strategy has been adopted to allow patients to be screened remotely and receive treatment at designated treatment centres in Gusau.

“The committee had also visited the Drugs and Medical Consumables Management Agency (DMCMA) in Gusau and has confidence in its ability to provide the necessary supplies for the outreach programme.

“In his resolve to revive the health sector and, out of compassion, Governor Dauda Lawal widened the scope of the programme to cover all the 14 local government areas of the State. The centres for outreach are General Hospital Gusau, King Fahad General Hospital, and Yariman Bakura Specialist Hospital. All special cases would be referred to the Federal Medical Centre in Gusau.”