The World Health Organisation (WHO), Bauchi Field Office, on Tuesday,
launched a medical outreach in Bauchi as part of activities to celebrate its 75 years of existence.
At the launch of the outreach at Primary Healthcare Centre, Fada in Bauchi, Dr Mahmood Saidu, the WHO Coordinator in
Bauchi State, said the organisation had continued to provide health services and ensured that people were safe.
Represented by Dr Musa Mohammed, the Surveillance Officer, WHO Bauchi Field Office, Saidu said that the medical outreach was
to ensure that women, children and adults access basic screening with availability of free drugs.
He said “it is an open outreach and we don’t have a number but everyone that comes here, as long as he has any ailment, we will
attend to him or her from now till evening.
“We are looking at people that have diabetes, hypertension, malaria, upper respiratory tract infection, including those with eyes
and nutrition problems.
“We have enough drugs to give to people. WHO is here to support the government of Nigeria; to provide technical support
and assistance to ensure that disease outbreaks are being responded to timely and everyone gets sound health.”
One of the beneficiaries, Malam Isa Mohammed, thanked the organisation for the gesture and prayed to have the organisation
around for many more years to come.
Earlier, the WHO officials visited the Emir of Bauchi, Alhaji Rilwanu Adamu, where the representative of the coordinator explained
that the organisation had continued to provide technical support to Bauchi State on disease surveillance and outbreak response.
He added that the world body had also provided technical support to the state on routine immunisation, Primary Healthcare
revitalisation, health systems strengthening, maternal, child and reproductive health, malaria, HIV and tuberculosis control.
The emir commended WHO for ensuring that vulnerable people received the best of medical attention.
He also lauded the organisation “for always rising to the occasion of disease surveillance and prevention”,
vital in promoting quality healthcare service delivery.
The emir expressed satisfaction with the performance of WHO as leading UN health agency and congratulated the body
over the 75th anniversary.
Adamu urged the state office of WHO to ensure more surveillance activities “to adequately combat infectious diseases that
are claiming lives of people daily in the state.”
He assured that the traditional institution would continue to partner the organisation to promote quality healthcare.