As part of efforts to cushion the effects of the lockdown on the poor and the vulnerable as a result of COVID-19, the Committee handling the palliatives procurement and distribution in Ondo State have commenced distribution of food items to hospitals in the state capital, Akure.
The Committee who went round the state presented food items to pregnant women and nursing mothers who were recuperating after delivering babies at the University of Medical Sciences, in Akure and other hospitals in the state.
Apart from the pregnant women and others on admission, workers rendering essential services but regarded as poor also benefitted from the palliatives items which include rice, beans, egg, chicken, spaghetti, macaroni, wheat and garri.
Speaking during the presentation, the Chairman of the Palliatives Committee, Akin Olotu, said women and children in the hospitals special, were given priority because the committee observed that most of the women and children were in need of a balanced diet, hence the inclusion of egg and chicken in their packages.
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He said: “We decided to include chicken and egg so it would boost their protein intake, which they really need at this stage (referring to nursing mothers who just gave birth to babies in the hospital.)
He, however, assured that hospitals in other local governments would get their own share of the palliatives.
The Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the UNIMEDTHC, Dr Adesina Akintan, described the gesture as apt and a thing of joy for presenting such items to the women, particularly those recuperating after delivery.
He commended the committee for considering those in the hospital in the distribution of the palliatives.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Wahab Adegbenro, described the Governor Rotimi Akeredolu-led administration as being responsible and responsive, saying this led to the distribution of palliatives to the poor and the vulnerable to cushion the effects of the necessary lockdown.
He said visiting the hospitals to give palliatives to nursing mothers and pregnant women was a welcome development.