By Gift Samuel
Following reports of the deplorable medical condition of several Internally Displaced Persons(IDPs), the Nigerian Air Force (NAF), through its Medical Services Branch, has organized Medical Outreach at the Camp for (IDPs) in Banki, Borno State.
During the 2-day medical outreach, the NAF Medical Team carried out four minor surgeries on three children and one adult while also taking deliveries of three new babies and attended to many health cases among which were malaria, typhoid and diarrhea cases among the children.
Disclosing this in a statement on Monday, the NAF Director of Public Relations and Information (DOPRI), Air Commodore Olatokunbo Adesanya, said that the Medical Outreach was initiated by the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar.
The DOPRI noted that the Team attended to cases of cataract and other eye-related problems, adding that they also conducted training programme on family planning and contraceptives for staff of Borno State Primary Health Care Development Agency and UNICEF to handle high-risk pregnancies, which was prevalent in the camp.
According to him; “It will be recalled that the NAF, under the leadership of Air Marshal Abubakar, has taken several steps to address the issues of healthcare delivery in IDP Camps, as part of its humanitarian interventions in the North East.
“For instance, two Emergency Hospitals had since been embedded at Dalori and Bama IDP Camps and various medical outreach programmes had been conducted at the IDP camps in Gwoza, Benisheik, Mainok and Jakana” he said.
He reiterated that the NAF remains committed to conducting more medical outreach programmes for the IDPs, in support of the Federal Government’s efforts in the same regard.
Banki Community is a border town with Cameroon and has about 42,000 IDPs.
