Cross River Government To Partner UCTH As FG’s 10,000 Free Surgery Scheme Commences

By Our Correspondent

The management of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital says it has mapped out plans in collaboration with the Cross River State Government to successfully carry out the 10,000 free surgeries scheme of the federal government under the Rapid Result Initiative (RRI).

The Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. Thomas Agan disclosed this, Monday during a planning meeting convened by UCTH management board where he said the facility will undertake about 700 surgeries under the scheme which is been implemented by 42 Federal Tertiary Hospitals across the country.

Among the surgeries to be performed in the state include 400 herniorrhaphy surgeries, 40 hydrocelectomy surgeries, 200 cataract extractions and 50 correction of refractive errors with glasses.

Agan said the assistance of doctors in the Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency (CRSPHCDA) will be required to mobilize serious cases from the rural communities after screening at the Local Government levels with successfully screened patients to be verified by the department of Social Welfare and transported to UCTH Calabar for the surgeries.

The Director General of CRSPHCDA, Dr. Betta Edu in her remarks said the initiative will go along way to reach out to people at the rural areas and ease the burden of the state government and fill truly existing gaps.

Edu commended the Federal Government for the go ahead to carry out the surgical operations for indigent persons in the society pointing out that the outreach will compliment the efforts of the wife of the Governor of Cross River State, Dr. Linda Ayade whom she said has been “passionately reaching out to rural communities in Cross River State with free medical outreach via Mediatrix Development Foundation her pet organization.”

She promised the Agency will partner with Federal Tertiary Hospital to mobilize indigent persons from all the Local Government Areas with the above stated cases to achieve maximum result as well as ensuring that necessary information is disseminated to beneficiaries.