Not less than 100 residents of Anguwan Makafi in Bauchi metropolis, Bauchi Local Government Area, have benefited from a free medical outreach organised by the Radiant Care Foundation (RCF) under its Project THRIVE 1.0 initiative.

The outreach was to bring basic healthcare services closer to underserved and vulnerable members of the community, particularly persons living with visual impairment.

Speaking during the exercise, Executive Director of the Foundation, Aliyu Miriam Ohunene, said the initiative was designed to help residents assess their health status, identify health conditions and receive appropriate medical attention.

“We came to reach out to the people to help them and to check their medical status, to know their health status and everything concerning their body, so we can diagnose, help them and give them medications,” she said.

She explained that beneficiaries were screened for malaria, blood pressure and other vital signs, as well as HIV, while children were also attended to during the exercise.

Ohunene, a nurse, said the outreach was necessary because some residents face difficulties accessing healthcare services and purchasing medicines for common illnesses.

According to her, the Foundation identified communities where there was a gap between residents and the healthcare system and decided to provide basic support through the outreach.

She added that some residents also lacked adequate knowledge about the importance of healthcare and regular medical checks. “We’re helping them check their vitals just to make sure, ensure that they are okay and they have a good quality of life,” she said.

Also, the Deputy Executive Director of the Foundation, Daniel Aliyu, described Project THRIVE 1.0 as a humanitarian medical outreach designed to provide essential basic healthcare services to underserved and vulnerable members of the community.

He said the inaugural edition was targeting 100 persons living with visual impairment in Bauchi and would provide basic medical screening, malaria testing and treatment, vital signs and blood glucose checks, medical consultation and prescribed medications.

He added that beneficiaries would also receive Long-Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) as part of efforts to prevent malaria.

According to him, the project seeks to identify common health conditions early, provide appropriate treatment and essential medicines, support malaria prevention and treatment, and identify beneficiaries requiring further medical attention for referral.

Daniel said the initiative was also designed to promote health equity and dignity by ensuring that persons living with visual impairment were not excluded from accessing essential healthcare services.

Declaring the outreach open, the Deputy Director, Primary Healthcare, Bauchi LGA, Mohammed Rashid Aliyu, commended the Foundation for bringing the initiative to the community. He said the programme came at the right time given the healthcare needs of residents, most of whom are persons with disabilities.

Aliyu assured that the government would continue to collaborate with organisations complementing its efforts in the health sector. He urged beneficiaries to take advantage of the opportunity by undergoing medical screening and following the recommendations of healthcare providers, including taking prescribed medications after diagnosis.

Also speaking, a representative of the Sarkin Makafi commended Radiant Care Foundation for bringing the outreach to the community, which he said had been left behind in accessing adequate healthcare services.

He noted that the nature of the community, largely made up of persons with disabilities, had made access to medical services a major challenge.

The representative therefore called on the government to pay greater attention to the community and provide interventions that would enable its residents to feel included and valued as citizens of Bauchi State and Nigeria.