No fewer than 114,000 patients across Adamawa South Senatorial District benefited from surgical interventions through medical outreach initiated by Sen. Binos Yaroe from 2019 to date.
Dr Jama Medan, the Coordinator of the Binos Yaroe Medical Outreach, made this known at a media engagement on impact of their free medical outreach on Saturday in Yola.
He stated that the major outreaches had been conducted in Ganye, Guyuk, Maiwa, Mayo-Belwa, Numan, Tongo, Jada, Shelleng communities.
According to him, the medical treatments are mostly related to cataracts, prostate enlargement, thyroid disorders, fibroids and other conditions requiring surgical intervention.
Medan said the initiative was conceived by Yaroe to take healthcare services directly to constituents, particularly residents of rural communities with limited access to functional health facilities.
The coordinator said the programme began in 2019 at Demsa Local Government Area, where 8,030 residents benefited from comprehensive medical services.
According to him, the first outreach offered general and specialised surgeries, and the experience encouraged the senator to sustain the programme, and subsequent outreaches were conducted in various communities across the senatorial district.
“In Dec. 2022 outreach at Jada General Hospital recorded 9,384 beneficiaries, while another outreach at Numan General Hospital recorded more than 10,800 beneficiaries.
“The services covered cataracts, prostate enlargement, thyroid disorders, fibroids and other conditions requiring surgical intervention,” he said.
Medan said major outreaches had been conducted in Ganye, Guyuk, Maiwa, Mayo-Belwa, Numan, Tongo, Jada, Shelleng and other communities.
The coordinator said thousands of residents benefited from the various exercises, bringing the cumulative number of beneficiaries to 114,000.
Medan said the medical teams also treated malaria, typhoid, hypertension, diabetes, skin diseases and other common ailments, while providing family planning and counselling services.
He said patients requiring specialised care were referred to facilities, including the Federal Medical Centre, Yola, and University of Jos Teaching Hospital in Plateau, with the senator funding their treatment.
“I recall the case of a young man who became blind from cataracts at the age of three and remained unable to see until he was treated through the programme at about 21 years,” the coordinator said.
Medan said the programme later introduced mobile hospitals to extend services beyond local government headquarters to hard-to-reach communities with limited access to functional healthcare facilities.
According to him, the mobile hospitals are equipped with operating theatres, anaesthetic equipment, patient monitors, oxygen, surgical instruments, laboratory and treatment spaces, and a labour room.
He said the mobile facilities had enabled medical teams to conduct day-case surgeries and provide treatment to residents who would otherwise travel long distances to access healthcare.
Medan added that the programme had also attracted beneficiaries from neighbouring states and Cameroon, particularly during outreaches conducted in border communities.
He said that the initiative was designed to complement existing healthcare services by taking treatment closer to underserved populations.
The coordinator said the programme would continue to support communities in Adamawa South through periodic medical outreaches and mobile healthcare services. (NAN)
