Zanzibar seeks more medical camps
ZANZIBAR: ZANZIBAR has called for more specialised medical camps across the islands, saying the strong public turnout at a recent eye-care campaign demonstrates the continuing need for accessible health services.
Urban West Regional Commissioner Mohammed Ali Abdallah made the call while closing an eye-care medical camp in Sebleni organised by Muhimbili National Hospital (MNH) in collaboration with Qatar Charity.
He said future camps should go beyond eye services to include screening and treatment for women’s health conditions, cancer, gastrointestinal problems, infectious diseases and non-communicable diseases.
“The Urban West Region still has a great need for health camps in different areas,” he said, urging development partners to work with the government to expand specialised services closer to communities.
The commissioner said the eye camp had demonstrated the value of taking medical services directly to the people, with thousands turning up for consultations, treatment, spectacles and surgery.
He also called for eye screening and treatment programmes targeting primary and secondary school students, saying children and adolescents needed greater access to eye-care services.
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Mr Abdallah commended Qatar Charity and the MNH for organising the campaign and urged the charity to continue supporting other medical camps rather than focusing exclusively on eye-care services.
He assured development partners that the regional government remained ready to cooperate on health programmes aimed at improving residents’ wellbeing.
Qatar Charity representative Dr Fatma Zahran described the campaign as one of the organisation’s most successful, saying the large turnout and congestion at service points demonstrated the high demand for eye-care services.
She said Qatar Charity would consider organising more eye-care camps in Zanzibar, including Unguja and Pemba.
The organisation also plans to broaden its health interventions and work with the government, health stakeholders, the Ministry of Health and the MNH to design projects based on communities’ actual needs.
