1000 vulnerable people benefit from free optical outreach in Bauchi

ABOUT 1000 vulnerable residents of Bauchi State have benefited from a free optical outreach to take care of various eyes-related illnesses.

The one-day event was organised by the Wunti Al-Khair Foundation, in partnership with Albasar International Foundation and Makka Specialist Eye Hospital, aimed at giving back to the society.

The health officer of the Wunti Al-Khair Foundation, Abduljabbar Ismail, said: “Today, we embarked on the optical outreach for residents of Bauchi Local Government Area. We have opticians who will look at the patients and attend to every aspect of eye treatment.

“We are also ready to make those who need surgery to undergo such at the collaborative facilities, even outside the state. Apart from the outreach, we have prepared food for all of them so that they will have something in their stomach while waiting for medical personnel.”

Ismail assured that the, outreach will soon be taken to the zonal levels after which it will go down to each of the 20 local government areas of the state.

Bala Salisu Abba, from Makka Specialist Eye Hospital, Bauchi, said: “We are here attending to patients and conducting eye screenings. We have encountered a large number of people with different eye conditions requiring medical attention.

“Our primary focus is on screening and managing various eye diseases. First, we are screening patients for cataracts and we are identifying people with refractive errors, those who have difficulty seeing clearly, whether at a distance or close range, and who may require corrective glasses.”

We are also screening for conditions such as glaucoma and retinal diseases. Although we do not provide retinal treatment at Makka Specialist Eye Hospital, we have a referral system that ensures patients receive appropriate care elsewhere so as not to lose their sight in the future.”

Some of the beneficiaries, who spoke to journalists, commended the organisations for the outreach.

A beneficiary,  who identified himself as the chief drummer of the Emir of Bauchi, said he was delighted to be among those benefiting from the outreach, saying that it came at the right time.