Over 3,000 residents Ogbomoso and its environs in Oyo State, journalists, and security agents are to benefit from three-day free medical outreach organized by the Ogbomoso 1st Group and its partners including US based Second Chance Smile Global Foundation and The Ajagbe – Ajala Legacy.
The exercise, which started on monday at O’1st Centre, Oke Osuru along Ajaawa Road, Ogbomoso, has about 100 medical doctors from different specialisations, more than 100 nurses, 10 practitioners of natural medicine and so on in attendance to dispense free medical services to beneficiaries.
Chairman, Local Organising Committee for the medical outreach, Otunba Bayo Babatunde, said about 6,000 eyeglasses, 3,500 COVID-19 test kits, 3,000 HIV/AIDS rapid test kits, and so on were among medical facilities to use for people and also give to them at no financial cost to the beneficiaries, after necessary consultations and tests.
Chairman, Ogbomoso First Group, Sir Olusegun Adekunle, said the medical outreach was organised for “the poor, the weak, the sick, the aged and the vulnerable in the society.
“It is an outreach meant to bring awareness on health issues to support government to meet the expectations of the citizens, and to provide a platform upon which the citizens in the categories that we have mentioned, and other categories as a matter of fact, to check their health status, receive counselling, go through cost free consultation, and also receive referrals to tertiary health institutions around us like Bowen Teaching Hospital and LAUTECH Teaching Hospital that are collaborating with us.”
Adekunle stated further that provision was also made in conjunction with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for a drug free test, apart from National Agency for the Control of Aids (NACA), Oyo State Agency for the Control of Aids (SACA), and a United States-based professor of oral and maxillofacial pathology, Oluwole Ajagbe, who is a native of Ogbomoso, to carry out the exercise.
According to Adekunle, “There are doctors, nurses and other experts that are with us to attend to people. Over the period of the three days, we are expecting 3,000 people to have passed through this process.
“There are other value additions to what we are doing. There is a pharmacy, manned by pharmacists and public health workers. They dispense drugs such as anti-malaria drugs, anargesics and what aviews that we can dispense to people, after they have done all our consultations and tests.
“These tests include blood sugar, and other things. We also take their vital signs and we advise them if there is any form of danger, such as high blood pressure or not.
“But the good side of it is that the National Agency for the Control of HIV and Aids, is here. The agency donated rapid test kits, as part of their community engagement process.”
The professor of oral and maxillofacial pathology, Oluwole Ajagbe, who said he is into a private practice in the United States, said he collaborated with the Ogbomoso First Group for the medical outreach for him to give back to the society.
Journalists that covered the opening ceremony of the exercise in Ogbomoso were also given opportunity to undergo the medical consultations, and tests. And they were given reading glasses at no financial costs to the beneficiaries.
Some of the beneficiaries commended the group for their concerns about the welfare of the people and pray for God’s blessings and protection for them. 76 years old women Arike said ” I am happy , i came her for my eyes problem and they attended to me very well