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By Oboh Linus, Abuja
As part of efforts to improve access to healthcare and support the well-being of underprivileged communities, the Holy Cross Gwarimpa Conference of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SSVP) has provided free medical care to more than 500 Abuja residents.
Mr Sylvester Ipenyi, President of the Holy Cross Gwarinpa SSVP disclosed this to newsmen at the Holy Cross Catholic Church, Gwarimpa, Abuja.
He said the initiative was part of a series of charitable projects that the society plans for underserved Abuja communities and the disadvantaged to commemorate its 20th anniversary.
Ipenyi explained that the medical care received by the beneficiaries includes hepatitis A and B typhoid screening, malaria, hypertension and hypotension medications, eye examinations, among other healthcare services.
The President said the less privileged and underserved communities as well as church members who could not afford medical care were at the centre of the SSVP philanthropic gesture.
“The medical intervention marks our 20th anniversary of service to the poor and needy. The church has been our pillar. We are using the medical outreach to appreciate them.
“We have so many people walking with one illness or the other, with this comprehensive medical outreach, they have received treatment, screened for hepatitis, blood sugar, and other diseases that they may find it difficult to visit the hospital for.
“So, we invited some medical personnel to conduct comprehensive tests and treatment, give medications, and also provide medical advice to the beneficiaries,” the President said.
Ipenyi said the SSVP had carried out several free medical interventions in the last 20 years that significantly impacted the lives of the vulnerable and underserved communities thereby saving them from out-of-pocket healthcare services and resources.
“Aside from the medical outreach, the society is planning to cite a water project at Kpai Kpai community, a rural community located within Gosa, Gui Ward, under the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), where the inhabitants lack potable water,” he said.
The President disclosed that the plan is underway to institute a scholarship and empowerment programme for 20 Abuja indigent parishioners.
“The society will also “recognise and award our benefactors and outstanding members of our Conference.” he disclosed.
Some of the beneficiaries simply identified as Mr John and a middle-aged woman, Mrs Hannah expressed gratitude to the Society, noting that the intervention came when they could not afford treatment for their illnesses.
“I am deeply grateful to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul for the free medication, which came at a time when I had no money to treat my illness. My heart is full of joy knowing there are still people who care for those of us in need,” Hannah said.
SSVP is a lay Catholic organisation that provides person-to-person help to those in need.
The Holy Cross Gwarimpa Conference of SSVP was founded two decades ago, in 2005, to provide charity to the poor and needy.
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