Date: 2023-08-31

On Tuesday, the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in Kwara State flagged off the 2023 third phase of its free medical outreach under the Health Initiative for Rural Dwellers (HIRD) programme in Tsaragi, Edu local government area of the state.

Speaking while declaring the event open, the state coordinator of the NYSC in Kwara State, Mr Onifade Olaoluwa, said that the HIRD, launched in 2014, is a platform aimed at promoting the well-being of indigent persons at the grassroots by granting them easier access to free and quality healthcare.

“The programme is largely implemented through medical outreach in communities across the country, during which Corps Medical Volunteers carry out diagnosis, treatment, minor medical procedures, and referrals of patients.

“Drugs, eyeglasses, and other medical consumables are also given to patients free of charge”, he said.

The NYSC state coordinator, who enjoined members of the community to take advantage of the free medical outreach to further enrich their health status, emphasised the determination of the NYSC to intensify efforts to make sure an average Nigerian has access to good medical care.

He also said that thousands of people have benefited from the HIRD in the state, adding that, apart from the HIRD, corps members are also using different media of the Community Development Service (CDS) to make other health-related interventions.

“Such interventions include health surveys, medical outreach and sensitization, renovation of the NYSC clinic at the NYSC state secretariat to serve members of the public for free on minor ailments, various campaigns against COVID-19, Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), HIV/AIDS malaria control, poliomyelitis, and other killer diseases”.

He also said that the health interventions of the scheme, through the HIRD and other platforms, have had an enormous impact, such as contributing to the improvement of reproductive health, the reduction of maternal and infant mortality, and the maintenance and improvement of health infrastructure.