By Lawrence Nwimo
About 400 residents of Ndiokpalaeze community in Orumba North Local Government Area, Anambra State, have benefited from free medical services provided by Comareg Healthcare Foundation.
The outreach, held on Saturday at the Ndiopkalaeze Civic Centre, attracted youths, women, the elderly and children from Ndiokpalaeze and neighbouring communities.
Beneficiaries received free medical check-ups, drugs, counselling and health talks. Medical cases treated included malaria, typhoid, diabetes, hypertension, cough and other common ailments.
In an address, the Executive Director and Founder of Comareg Healthcare Foundation, Lady Princess Nwando Onyeagwalam, explained that the intervention was aimed at bridging the healthcare gap for poor and vulnerable residents.
"This gathering holds a deeply special place in my heart. Our foundation was established out of a profound passion to advance healthcare delivery at the grassroots level.
"At Comareg Healthcare Foundation, our vision is simple yet transformative: to ensure that local communities achieve and maintain optimal health, equipped with the capacity to care for themselves and uplift one another," she said.
Onyeagwalam added that her Foundation is committed to closing the healthcare gap in underserved communities and ensuring that poverty does not determine who gets medical attention. She explained that Comareg Healthcare Foundation is working to challenge systemic healthcare inequalities by taking essential services directly to the grassroots.
"Our target is clear. By the year 2030, we want to contribute immensely to improving access to quality healthcare in our communities," she said.
According to her, the foundation will achieve this through regular outreaches, health education, early detection through screenings, and referrals for cases that require specialist care. She noted that the ultimate goal is to build healthier communities where residents have the knowledge and resources to take charge of their own wellbeing.
Also speaking, the Head of Administration of the Foundation, Mr. Peter Ubakeze, said the programme covers health awareness and screening for blood pressure, sugar level, heart conditions and others.
"So far since 2019, we have held several programmes and have not for one day asked anybody to pay a dime for anything. The vision is to give maximum healthcare to everyone," he said.
The Health Coordinator of the Foundation, Mrs. Nsoke Gloria, said the team conducted laboratory tests for HIV, malaria, glucose and hepatitis, as well as chest X-rays and general consultations.
"Once we check their systems, we give them treatment or refer the patient to PHCs in the community depending on the medical condition. We have medication for malaria, typhoid, cough and routine drugs. Except the very severe ones which we cannot handle here," she said.
She added that health talks were also delivered on maternal health, mental health, gender-based violence and anti-corruption.
On gender-based violence, the GBV Desk Officer at the Anambra State Ministry of Health, Mrs. Chioma Offor, urged residents to speak up and report all forms of abuse to the appropriate authorities. She said gender-based violence affects both men and women, but minors and other vulnerable groups are often the worst hit.
Offor called on community leaders to desist from settling GBV cases at the community level and instead refer them to the police and other response agencies.
"GBV is a very sensitive issue. We expect community leaders to report cases to the police and direct them to appropriate authorities and response teams. Such cases should not be handled in isolation," she said.
She also sensitised participants on available support services, including psychosocial care, and encouraged victims and witnesses to seek help early to ensure justice for survivors.
Executive Director of Creative Minds Centre for Youths and Community Development, Mrs. Ugochi Freeman spoke on the Sex Offenders Register and anti-corruption. She urged residents to unite against child defilement and all forms of gender-based violence, noting that value reorientation must begin from the family and grassroots level.
Freeman educated participants on the Violence Against Persons Prohibition, VAPP, Law and the services available under the state implementation committee, including psychosocial support, free legal and medical services at the Sexual Assault Referral Centre in Enugwu-Ukwu.
She further stressed the need for transparency and accountability in communities, warning that corruption undermines development and denies the poor access to basic services.
President-General of Ndiokpalaeze Improvement Union, Barrister Uchenna Obiora, described the health talk and medical outreach as timely and beneficial to indigenes of the community. He said the intervention was an act of benevolence by a daughter of the community.
"This is one if the many times she is bringing this kind of programme to the community where she comes from. I urge her to sustain it because it is worth doing," he said.
He said the community has zero tolerance for gender-based violence, especially against minors, and would not hesitate to use appropriate channels to ensure justice for any survivor.
"GBV is a very serious issue because a person being abused cannot fight for themselves. For us as a community, we have taken it upon ourselves to ensure that GBV, especially against minors, does not happen here. We are proactive and do not wait until it happens before we act," he said.
One of the beneficiaries, Mazi Okezie Umeh, said he was screened for malaria, diabetes, HIV and TB, and described the exercise as beneficial, with professional and satisfactory services.
Another beneficiary, Mrs. Chioma Okoli, said her entire household benefited from the outreach and prayed for the continuation of the programme, adding that the organizer should be blessed for helping the poor who cannot afford medical care in the community.
"May God continue to bless her for reaching out to those of us who cannot afford proper medical care. Due to cost, some of us have not gone for a medical checkup this year, but she has made it possible for us to access it free of charge," she said.