By Felicia Imohimi
Abuja – As part of activities to commemorate the World Population day, the Planned Parenthood Federation of Nigeria (PPFN) an NGO, offered free medical services to no fewer than 260 FCT residents.
Speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday, Mrs Mary Ifaorumhe, Clinic Officer, PPFN Abuja Clinic, listed the services to include: family planning, HIV screening, managing Blood Pressure (BP), weight and general counselling.
Ifaorumhe said that the outreach organised by PPFN was geared toward educating the populace on the necessity of family planning, knowing their HIV status and measures against high blood pressure, a silent killer.
The officer, said that it was speculative the perception by few individuals that family planning was against the will of God and that it reduces the nation’s population.
She said family planning guarantees a healthy nation.
Ifaorumhe described family planning as a method in which couple’s decide the number of children and spacing of children through the use of contraceptive, abstinence and hormonal birth control among others.
“Spacing your children will assure women, children and the entire family of quality health likewise the nation.
“Family planning affords parents opportunity to decide the number of children they will have and can conveniently cater for without difficulties.
“It helps us to have healthy population; the women can have access to sexual reproductive service among others.
“This outreach is aimed at sensitising the populace on different methods of family planning and its benefits; create awareness on regular checking of BP and avail them the opportunity to know their HIV status.
“Over the years, we discovered that the prevalence of HIV was due to the failure of people to go for test; also due to being ignorant of their HIV status,” she said.
Ifaorumhe, however expressed displeasure on the low turnout of people especially women in accessing family planning services as against men.
NAN reports that this year’s World Population day has as its theme “Family Planning: Empowering people, developing nations.’’(NAN)