Young doctors from Garissa unite to fundraise and conduct free medical camps
Youth for Ummah has so far covered various villages in Garissa County including Dololo, Saretho, Eledere, Gababa among others.
Young doctors majority from Garissa County have come together to contribute and offer much-needed free medical care through a local organisation they founded known as Youth for Umma.
The youthful doctors from various spheres in the medical field noted that they decided to offer themselves for the cause after they found out that there was a huge gap in the health care provision.
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Abdiaziz Ismail, a medical doctor who is the chairperson for Youth for Umma, said they have so far covered centres in rural areas where they offer consultancy and referrals.
He said the Youth for Ummah was founded in December 2017 but was initially doing community service and later on changed their focus to healthcare since a majority of the youths were healthcare givers.
“Our main source of fundraising is from members who contribute monthly. This fund covers transportation and drugs for respective villages. We would be offering a free medical camp,” he told The Eastleigh Voice on Tuesday.
Youth for Ummah has so far covered various villages in Garissa County including Dololo, Saretho, Eledere, Gababa among others.
Doctors from Youth for Ummah group attend to a patient in one of the villages in Garissa.
According to the chairman, the group consists of medical doctors, lab technicians, nurses, nutritionists and clinical officers as well as other members who are non-medics.
“Our main aim for doing this is to improve the health sector in our small way of contribution to the communities. However, our main challenge is financing as members' contribution is not always enough” he said.
Overwhelming response
Dr Abdiaziz said in the free medical camp they have offered in various villages, the response has been overwhelming, perhaps showing that there is a need for frequent such activities.
Youth for Ummah members in one of the villages in Garissa.
The youthful doctors told The Eastleigh Voice that when a patient requires referrals, they refer and then come together to contribute to further medication.
“Imagine having over 800 patients waiting for you and who have different ailments. We as youthful doctors try our best as a way of giving back to the community,” said the chairman.
He said the majority of pastoralists do not value their health, a virtue they have also been creating awareness in the communities they attend to.
The doctor said they have also been focused on chronic illnesses like hypertension as many villagers do not get the required diagnosis on time.
A doctor who is a member of Youth for Ummah attends to a child in one of the villages in Garissa.
Another Member of the Youth for Ummah Dr Leila Mohamed said they are currently fundraising for three family members who have hearing difficulties.
They were all attended to during one of their free medical camps within the county.
“What we are looking forward to is to get those family members to at least get their sense of hearing albeit with a hearing aid and also do more free medical camps and reach as many people as possible,” she said.
The group has opened a Lipa na M-Pesa Paybill number 6081976.
A doctor from Youth for Ummah group attends to a patient in one of the villages in Garissa.
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