Lebarty Community Health Foundation, an NGO, has organised a one day medical outreach for three different orphanages in Benin, the Edo capital.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at the end of the event on Sunday at Iduowina community, off Benin- Lagos Express way, Dr Nosa Aigbe-Lebarty, Founder of the NGO, said “not everyone can afford to pay for medical treatment”.
Aigbe-Lebarty said the foundation existed to meet the health needs of the vulnerable, elderly and less privileged groups in the society.
He said conductiing a general medical examination as well as eye checks for children in orphanages was a way to promote universal health access for all.
“It was a massive turnout, seeing the amount of support the children need; the basic things just made me feel a sense of responsibility to do more.
“It was a good outing and it was really an eye-opener for me, I actually got to see what the children go through. People go to the orphanages to give pallatives, but the health status of the children is very key.
“Knowing that they don’t have that warm touch from their biological parents gets to me as a father,” he said.
He assured that follow-up would be done for the cases of children with serious health issues, especially the case of a four year old child suffering from blindness.
“We saw some children who were malnourished, those with birth complications and those with malaria, cattarh and cough. We gave them free drugs and also gave out some pallatives to the children.”
Rev. Sister MaryJoy Anoliefo, one of the representatives of Trinitarian Missionary of Merciful Love Congregation orphanage at the outreach, commended the NGO for considering the health needs of the less privileged.
She said: “We are very happy that our children were selected to benefit from the free medical treatment, it is not an easy thing to pay for medical consultation and drugs at the hospital.
“Our children were attended to in a friendly and warm manner , so we are very happy. May the Almighty God bless the doctors and the organisers.”
Dr Beauty Ehikioya, Director of Prinary Health Care, Ikpoba Okha Local Government Area of Edo, advised parents and guardians to protect their wards from coming down with malaria and cold during the rainy season.
Ehikioya, while commending the NGO for the free medical programme, noted that most of the children examined had malaria and upper respiratory track infections.
“Dr Nosa Aigbe has done well for considering the health needs and welfare of the less privileged in the society.
“He organised a free medical programme and also gave food items and learning materials and the children are all happy,” she said.
NAN reports that more than 100 children from the three different homes and their care givers benefitted from the outreach.
NAN also reports that a session of the medical outreach was dedicated to the elderly in the community where they were screened for different basic illnesses and also provided with medication.
The foundation also distributed water purifiers to some members of the community to reduce the cases of cholera. (NAN)
