About 10,000 people in the Northern Region have benefited from a free health screening exercise organised by the Ghana Medical Relief (GMR), a USA-based not for profit organisation (NGO), in collaboration with the Institute for Promotion of Health, Education and the arts of Technology (iHPET).
The beneficiaries were screened for various health conditions including diabetes, hepatitis B, dental infections, eye infections and blood pressure.
A team of health practitioners, made up of eye specialists, medical doctors, midwives, pharmacists, laboratory technicians and nurses attended to the beneficiaries.
Some of the beneficiaries who were diagnosed of various diseases were given medication for free while others were counselled and were referred to the various units of the Tamale Teaching Hospital and other health facilities for further attention.
The screening was carried out in four zones in the region, namely Tamale, Yendi, Saboba and Bimbilla.
Aside from that, the organisation is also enrolling about 2,000 people onto the National Health Insurance Scheme free of charge to enable them to access medical care.
The President of the Ghana Medical Relief, Dr Samuel Owusu, said the gesture formed part of the organisation’s commitment to provide free healthcare services to the people, particularly those who could not afford it.
A health worker (left) attending to some of the beneficiaries
He indicated that the organisation had been providing free medical care to communities in the country for the past five years to improve the health care of the people.
He reiterated the organisation’s commitment to continue to give back to society, stating that “some of the communities are suffering to access health care due to circumstances beyond their control and their income level”.
“The free health screening has come to ease the burden on parents and caretakers in this region.
I urge all the beneficiaries to prioritise their health by doing regular check-ups at the health facilities ” Dr Owusu noted.
Commendation
For his part, the acting Northern Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Braimah Baba Abubakari, commended the organisation for selecting the region to benefit from the free medical screening exercises.
He reiterated his outfit’s commitment to continue to partner various organisations to deliver quality healthcare services to the people.
