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THE Ministry of Health (MOH) in collaboration with Masjid An Najm is conducting a two-day medical outreach at the Masjid An Najm and Social Centre, and the tarmac in the Albouystown community which ends today. Services offered at the Masjid include eye care, Visual Inspection with Acetic Acid (VIA) screening for cervical cancer and Voluntary counselling and HIV testing. Also, the services offered at the tarmac include Dental check and extraction, and General medical screening for Blood Pressure and Blood Sugar. All of these services and more are offered from 09:00hrs at both locations.
Speaking with the media at the outreach yesterday, Chief Medical Officer in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Shamdeo Persaud said that this exercise is a part of the observance of world Aids Day 2012, which was observed yesterday.
He related that the Ministry decided to conduct some outreach activities, particularly in some areas of the city where services aren’t so readily available. He added that yesterday and today the wide range of medical services will be offered in the Albouystown community.
Dr. Shamdeo said that so far there has been a constant flow of people, but not an overwhelming amount. He noted that there are two doctors, a pharmacist and an optometrist offering their services.
He added that there’s a medicine station, and patients can be offered medication immediately, noting that there’s also immediate delivery for those persons who are seen with any medical condition.
According to him, the dental bus will be doing dental work, checks, and offering preventative dental services, noting that throughout the morning all of the chairs at the dental station have been filled.
Dr. Shamdeo said that there’s also a lot of information available, including information on tuberculosis, diabetes, hypertension, as well as health educators on call to talk to persons about various diseases.
He informed that the objective of this outreach is the provision of rapid medical services to the members of the community. He added that the initiative is to bring the service closer, in order to prevent the usual queue of persons waiting to receive medical, and as such it is not being done at a health facility.
He is encouraging members of the community to take full advantage of the services, and emphasised that once patients are there, the booths will be kept open, and quality service will be ensured.
Meanwhile, speaking to the media yesterday at the outreach, a resident of the Albouystown community, Dennis Beckles, related that he was passing by when he realised that these services were being offered, and decided to stop in.
Beckles noted that he had done both blood pressure and blood sugar testing and received positive results. He added that he also took advantage of the free eye care services, and was just about to do an HIV test.
The young man said that he thinks that this exercise will benefit members of his community tremendously, and he encouraged other persons to come out and take advantage of these services.
Dr. Shamdeo told media operatives that just from the use of the kits, there have been close to 10,000 persons tested for HIV since the commencement of the National Week of Testing. He added that the activity has been expanded throughout the country, and there’s a target that he hopes will be achieved by the end of the week.
According to him, in other areas such as Berbice, Linden, and West Demerara, there are also more testing sites identified, and each region is planning different activities in observance of the National week of testing.
He added that the Ministry is trying to get far reaching places such as Lethem, Mabaruma and Mahdia to conduct such activities. According to him, in Lethem, there’s a Non Governmental Organization that’s working together with the health department to conduct medical outreaches.
Dr. Shamdeo said that the ministry is encouraging the various health departments to move out from their regular place of operations and go into communities to conduct various medical exercises.
World Aids day 2012 was held yesterday under the theme “getting to Zero: Zero new HIV infections. Zero discrimination. Zero AIDS related deaths.” Dr. Shamdeo informed that a walk will be held today in observance of this, adding that it will commence at 6:00am, moving off from parliament building and ending up at the outreach site in Albouystown.
Speaking with the media at the outreach yesterday, Chief Medical Officer in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Shamdeo Persaud said that this exercise is a part of the observance of world Aids Day 2012, which was observed yesterday.
He related that the Ministry decided to conduct some outreach activities, particularly in some areas of the city where services aren’t so readily available. He added that yesterday and today the wide range of medical services will be offered in the Albouystown community.
Dr. Shamdeo said that so far there has been a constant flow of people, but not an overwhelming amount. He noted that there are two doctors, a pharmacist and an optometrist offering their services.
He added that there’s a medicine station, and patients can be offered medication immediately, noting that there’s also immediate delivery for those persons who are seen with any medical condition.
According to him, the dental bus will be doing dental work, checks, and offering preventative dental services, noting that throughout the morning all of the chairs at the dental station have been filled.
Dr. Shamdeo said that there’s also a lot of information available, including information on tuberculosis, diabetes, hypertension, as well as health educators on call to talk to persons about various diseases.
He informed that the objective of this outreach is the provision of rapid medical services to the members of the community. He added that the initiative is to bring the service closer, in order to prevent the usual queue of persons waiting to receive medical, and as such it is not being done at a health facility.
He is encouraging members of the community to take full advantage of the services, and emphasised that once patients are there, the booths will be kept open, and quality service will be ensured.
Meanwhile, speaking to the media yesterday at the outreach, a resident of the Albouystown community, Dennis Beckles, related that he was passing by when he realised that these services were being offered, and decided to stop in.
Beckles noted that he had done both blood pressure and blood sugar testing and received positive results. He added that he also took advantage of the free eye care services, and was just about to do an HIV test.
The young man said that he thinks that this exercise will benefit members of his community tremendously, and he encouraged other persons to come out and take advantage of these services.
Dr. Shamdeo told media operatives that just from the use of the kits, there have been close to 10,000 persons tested for HIV since the commencement of the National Week of Testing. He added that the activity has been expanded throughout the country, and there’s a target that he hopes will be achieved by the end of the week.
According to him, in other areas such as Berbice, Linden, and West Demerara, there are also more testing sites identified, and each region is planning different activities in observance of the National week of testing.
He added that the Ministry is trying to get far reaching places such as Lethem, Mabaruma and Mahdia to conduct such activities. According to him, in Lethem, there’s a Non Governmental Organization that’s working together with the health department to conduct medical outreaches.
Dr. Shamdeo said that the ministry is encouraging the various health departments to move out from their regular place of operations and go into communities to conduct various medical exercises.
World Aids day 2012 was held yesterday under the theme “getting to Zero: Zero new HIV infections. Zero discrimination. Zero AIDS related deaths.” Dr. Shamdeo informed that a walk will be held today in observance of this, adding that it will commence at 6:00am, moving off from parliament building and ending up at the outreach site in Albouystown.
