THE Minister of Health, Dr Benjamin Kumbour, has commended members of the Nandom Youth Forum, a local NGO, for mobilizing resources to cater for the health needs of the people of Nandom and its environs.
He made the commendation when he addressed hundreds of patients and staff of the Nandom Hospital who had turned up to access a three-day annual health outreach programme organised by the Nandom Youth Forum during the Easter break.
This was the seventh such programme organised by the NGO, with the active involvement of citizens of the traditional who are health practitioners.
A team of five doctors led by Dr Josephat Nyuzagr, Bole District Health Director and Medical Superintendent of the Bole Hospital, haled cases of malaria, diabetes, high blood pressure, hepatitis B, and general body pains, among others. They also performed 34 surgeries, 31 of which were major. Over 900 people were attended to.
The other doctors were Dr Juventus Ziem and Dr Alex Buunaayim, both Lecturers at the University for Development Studies Medical School, Dr Anthony Anyasonde of the Tamale Teaching Hospital, and Dr Richard Wodah, Resident Doctor of the Nandom Hospital. They were later joined by Dr E.N. Gyader, a renowned Surgeon and Dean of the University for Development Studies Medical School.
Dr Kumbour, who was visibly impressed by the massive patient turn out, said the Ministry of Health had taken special notice of the immense contribution that the Nandom Youth Forum was making towards the health of the people of Nandom and even people in southern parts of neigbouring Burkina Faso, and would not hesitate to offer any assistance to continue the health outreach project from strength to strength.
“It is heart-warming that the youth would normally abandon the joy and comfort of Easter celebrations to travel home from Accra, Tamale and other parts of the country to offer humanitarian services to their people,” he said and tasked other youth groups to take a cue from the Nandom Youth Forum.
He announced that the Ministry of Health was awaiting technical advice from experts tasked to look into the infrastructural rehabilitation of the Nandom Hospital for the project to commence.
On the issue of lack of a permanent Resident Doctor for the Nandom Hospital, the Minister said his outfit was putting packages in place as incentives to Doctors who took up postings to the rural hospitals like that of Nandom.
He later inspected the construction of a modern morgue for the hospital and an 80kv-capacity generator set installed to provide uninterrupted power supply to the hospital.
Dr Gyader lamented that though Nandom had over 100 citizens who are doctors, none was willing to settle in the area.
He therefore commended the Nandom Youth Forum for the health outreach programme and called on others especially the elite to give something back to Nandom.
The Chairman of the Forum, Mark Imoru, said members were not only concerned with the health welfare of the people, but were also working at providing support for education and the agricultural activities of the people.
He said it was for this reason that the Forum this year donated textbooks covering Mathematics, English, Integrated Science and Social Studies to the Nandom and Ko Senior High Schools (SHS) in the Lawra-Nandom District and Piina SHS in the Lambusie-Kaani District.
Members of the Forum later called on the Paramount Chief of the Nandom Traditional Area, Naa (Dr) Charles Puobe Puoure Chiir VII, at his palace.
He made the commendation when he addressed hundreds of patients and staff of the Nandom Hospital who had turned up to access a three-day annual health outreach programme organised by the Nandom Youth Forum during the Easter break.
This was the seventh such programme organised by the NGO, with the active involvement of citizens of the traditional who are health practitioners.
A team of five doctors led by Dr Josephat Nyuzagr, Bole District Health Director and Medical Superintendent of the Bole Hospital, haled cases of malaria, diabetes, high blood pressure, hepatitis B, and general body pains, among others. They also performed 34 surgeries, 31 of which were major. Over 900 people were attended to.
The other doctors were Dr Juventus Ziem and Dr Alex Buunaayim, both Lecturers at the University for Development Studies Medical School, Dr Anthony Anyasonde of the Tamale Teaching Hospital, and Dr Richard Wodah, Resident Doctor of the Nandom Hospital. They were later joined by Dr E.N. Gyader, a renowned Surgeon and Dean of the University for Development Studies Medical School.
Dr Kumbour, who was visibly impressed by the massive patient turn out, said the Ministry of Health had taken special notice of the immense contribution that the Nandom Youth Forum was making towards the health of the people of Nandom and even people in southern parts of neigbouring Burkina Faso, and would not hesitate to offer any assistance to continue the health outreach project from strength to strength.
“It is heart-warming that the youth would normally abandon the joy and comfort of Easter celebrations to travel home from Accra, Tamale and other parts of the country to offer humanitarian services to their people,” he said and tasked other youth groups to take a cue from the Nandom Youth Forum.
He announced that the Ministry of Health was awaiting technical advice from experts tasked to look into the infrastructural rehabilitation of the Nandom Hospital for the project to commence.
On the issue of lack of a permanent Resident Doctor for the Nandom Hospital, the Minister said his outfit was putting packages in place as incentives to Doctors who took up postings to the rural hospitals like that of Nandom.
He later inspected the construction of a modern morgue for the hospital and an 80kv-capacity generator set installed to provide uninterrupted power supply to the hospital.
Dr Gyader lamented that though Nandom had over 100 citizens who are doctors, none was willing to settle in the area.
He therefore commended the Nandom Youth Forum for the health outreach programme and called on others especially the elite to give something back to Nandom.
The Chairman of the Forum, Mark Imoru, said members were not only concerned with the health welfare of the people, but were also working at providing support for education and the agricultural activities of the people.
He said it was for this reason that the Forum this year donated textbooks covering Mathematics, English, Integrated Science and Social Studies to the Nandom and Ko Senior High Schools (SHS) in the Lawra-Nandom District and Piina SHS in the Lambusie-Kaani District.
Members of the Forum later called on the Paramount Chief of the Nandom Traditional Area, Naa (Dr) Charles Puobe Puoure Chiir VII, at his palace.
