A two-day community health outreach program kicked off at the Maryam Abacha Hospital and Offa Road, Sokoto, on August 14, 2024. It was a collaboration between a Lagos based social marketing enterprise, DKT Nigeria and the Sokoto State Ministry of Health, marking the State’s transformative maternal and child health push. It showcased commitment to underserved rural areas, while enhancing grassroots healthcare services through structured initiatives.
During the outreach, over 700 men and women received family planning kits, including intrauterine devices (IUDs), implants, and condoms. The program also featured comprehensive health talks and vital checks conducted by experienced nurses. It provided essential information on contraceptive methods, child spacing and the positive impact of family planning on maternal health and overall family wellbeing.
There was significant community members’ participation, including local dignitaries, and leader, Sarkin Yaki Gagi, Malami Marafa. The Sarkin encouraged women, to embrace planning for family health and general wellbeing. Key figures from the Sokoto Ministry of Health, such as Dr. Tukur Garba, Director of State Primary Healthcare Board, and Shafaatu Bello, Reproductive Health Coordinator, were also present. There were also Community healthcare workers and natives deliver services and educate on nutrition and hygiene, fostering empowerment and responsibility, leading to immediate and long-term health improvements for families.
Beneficiaries highlighted the program’s benefits of mobile clinics that would improve maternal healthcare. The initiative hopefully, will reduce maternal and child mortality rates through prenatal care and health education. The health outreach program should profoundly impact rural communities with limited or non-existent access to essential healthcare services.
Over all, the Sokoto State’s health outreach program will address unique healthcare challenges by using mobile clinics to improve maternal and child health, overcoming logistical barriers, and fostering regional cooperation to tackle cross-border health issues. The health outreach program could significantly improve maternal and child health, reduce mortality rates, and increase healthcare utilization.
Apart from demonstrating a commitment to tackling health challenges in maternal and child health in rural communities, its success might become a model for other states with similar challenges and enough to attract international interest and investment.
