300,000 Oyo Residents Benefit From Free Health Mission

No fewer than 300,000 residents of Oyo State have benefitted from the Omitutun free health mission across the state.

The second quarter of the outreach, which came to an end on Thursday at Ring Road Specialist Hospital, Ibadan, witnessed an increase in the number of eye surgeries, dental care, physiotherapy cases treated, compared to previous ones.

The Permanent Secretary, Oyo State Ministry of Health, Dr. Olusoji Adeyanju, while speaking on the campaign, expressed delight over the incorporation of dental care, eye treatment and physiotherapy into the free medical outreach.

Adeyanju disclosed that 50 per cent who benefited from the surgery were pensioners.

“1, 639 benefited from eye surgery with glasses given at no cost, while 262 cataracts were done successfully. What gladdens my heart is the good will of our governor and immense support for the project.

“When we started the Free Health Mission during Omituntun 1.0, treatments like dental care, eye treatment and physiotherapy were not there, now we have them in Omituntun 2.0.

“Today, we have done 2,128 surgeries, and I am happy because about 50 percent of beneficiaries were pensioners. Also, we have 5,444 and 1, 288 beneficiaries for dental care services and physiotherapy respectively.”

Also speaking, the Coordinator, Omituntun Free Health Mission, Dr. Wale Falana, submitted that the project was massive, considering its impact on the people of the state.

Falana, who doubles as the Director, Secondary Health Care and training in the ministry, said that over 300,000 residents benefited from the project.

Falana added that there were decreases in hernia cases, which he said was testimony that the project is yielding positive results.

He advised the beneficiaries placed on drugs, particularly hypertensive, diabetes, among others, to use their drugs accordingly.

 Falana also admonished residents of the state to subscribe to Oyo state health insurance scheme with the payment of stipends for them to access needed health care.

In their separate remarks, some beneficiaries, Sola Oyebode and Sulaiman Nurudeen, applauded the governor for the gesture, and commended the medical team for prompt and qualitative health care accorded for free.

Oyebode, however, appealed to the Oyo state government to focus more on the rural dwellers in nooks and crannies of the state as a result of their financial status in the society.

The next phase of the free health mission, according to the coordinator, will commence in the next three to four months.