AFIKPO(EBONYI) – The Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) has [pro_ad_display_adzone id=”10″]commenced a four-day free rural medical outreach in Ebonyi to improve the healthcare service in the area.
Dr Uduak Essen, SURE-P National Prevention Focal Person for HIV and AIDS programme, said in Afikpo North local government area of the state that the programme was to create free health care access in rural communities.
“The free medical outreach is the whole compliment of healthcare services of SURE-P with the whole medical personnel involved.
“During services we render test for blood sugar, blood pressure and other medical care such as HIV and AIDS status.
“The people are also counselled on how to live a healthy life, and prescriptions are made and drugs administered at the pharmacy point,” she said.
Essen said SURE-P was sponsoring the entire programme in collaboration with the National Agency for Control of AIDS (NACA).
“This programme is the phase two and is simultaneously holding in Nasarawa, Sokoto and Edo states while in the phase one, six states benefitted from it,’’ she said.
She listed others to include the FCT, Niger, Bayelsa, Delta, Enugu and Anambra states.
The Caretaker Committee Chairman for Afikpo North Local Governement Council,Mr Anthony Ekoh, commended the Federal Government for initiating the scheme.
Represented by Mr Sylvanus Nnachi, Head of the council’s Administration, Ekoh enjoined the people to take advantage of the free medical programme to improve on their health.
“This programme is an indication of the present administration of President Goodluck Jonathan to better the living condition of the people,’’ he said.
Mr Philip Ivoke, the Executive Director, Initiative for Health Awareness and Care, said that the programme was one of the new strategies the federal government had adopted to improve the lives of the citizenry.
“Before now what we normally do is that we would be at the top, make initiations and bring programmes to the grassroots without getting the real stakeholders involved.
“So this partnership is done to ensure that the critical stakeholders, which is the civil society, are part and parcel of implementing this programme.
“What we have done is that we have taken a step further in engaging all the local NGOs to support this programme,” he said.
He noted that the data collected during the outreach throughout the federation on HIV and AIDs would be used as part of the national survey to generate a verifiable data for the disease.
Some of the beneficiaries, Madam Felicia Ibenwa and Mr Emmanuel Ajukah, expressed happiness with the programme and solicited for its sustenance. (NAN)
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