Onuminya Innocent in Sokoto
A member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in Sokoto State, Miss Amanwi Gahtan Ndomchen, has provided free Hepatitis screening for 250 residents and trained students of Rochas Foundation School on skills acquisition.
The medical outreach was carried out in collaboration with UNICEF, Pathfinder Women and Children Development Initiative (PWCDI) and Pure Path Health Initiative (PHI).
The programme targeted residents of Kwanawa community and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Dange/Shuni Local Government Area of the state.
It also included general health checks, blood pressure and blood sugar tests, as well as health sensitisation.
Speaking with newsmen after the exercise, Ndomchen said she was motivated by the low level of medical literacy in the country, where many only seek care when their condition has worsened.
She noted that many Nigerians unknowingly live with ailments until complications set in.
Ndomchen, a medical biochemist, said those who tested positive for Hepatitis would be referred for treatment and counselling, stressing that early detection remains key to effective management.
The Director of Medical Services, Sokoto State Ministry of Health, Adamu Abubakar Ibrahim, commended the corps member for the gesture.
Ibrahim said the outreach would create needed awareness, adding that Hepatitis B is manageable and curable when detected early, while advising those with high blood pressure and sugar levels to adopt healthy lifestyles.
The Coordinator of PWCDI, Hajiya Aisha Dantshoho, also lauded Ndomchen and urged other corps members to emulate her.
Dantshoho said her organisation partnered the corps member because of its commitment to improving the lot of women and children, noting that PWCDI provided testing kits and other materials for the programme.
The Programme Manager of Pure Path Health Initiative, Theophilus Odeleye, said his organisation would continue to support preventive healthcare programmes at the grassroots.
In a related development, Ndomchen also trained students of Rochas Foundation School, Sokoto, on skills acquisition and empowered two best students with start-up funds as part of her Community Development Service (CDS) project.
She said the training, which covered production of soaps, shampoo, peanuts and cosmetics, was aimed at making the students self-reliant in a world driven by entrepreneurship.
The Principal of the school, Mr. Michael Shilong, thanked the corps member for the laudable gesture and urged the students to take the skills seriously, noting that white-collar jobs are no longer readily available.
The NYSC Coordinator in Sokoto State, Mr. Tyoyer Gabriel Ter, represented by the Assistant Director, CDS, Alhaji Nafiu Garba Nadama, commended Ndomchen, saying posterity will remember her for her contributions to humanity and urged other corps members to initiate impactful community projects.