Community members in the Outapi constituency of Omusati region are set to benefit from a three-day free medical outreach programme aimed at improving access to healthcare services and information.
The Omusati Medical Campaign Tour, themed ‘Northern Wellness Drive Vol. 3,’ is scheduled to take place in Outapi from 8 to 10 April.
The programme is an initiative by DuneSeven Medical Centre, in partnership with the Walvis Bay Corridor Group (WBCG), One Economy Foundation, and the Namibia Planned Parenthood Association (NAPPA).
According to organisers, the three-day programme aims to offer free healthcare services to communities, including general medical check-ups, health consultations, HIV and STI testing, and testing for blood pressure, blood sugar, and haemoglobin levels.
Additionally, people are also expected to receive more general services during the initiatives, such as counselling, hygiene information, and sexual and reproductive health information, on all three occasions.
The project manager at DuneSeven Medical Centre, Pinehas Nakaziko, said the programme hopes to improve access to healthcare, especially for people in the region.
“This initiative, which is apart from medical checks, is about bringing services closer to the people and empowering communities with health knowledge that can save lives in the community,” he said.
The campaign was launched by Dr Elifas Shapumba in 2023, beginning in the Erongo region and then expanding to other areas, including the Oshana region. To date, more than 800 community members have benefited from the campaign.
“Having been born and raised in Omusati, I came up with this idea to host the third edition because I have always felt a sense of obligation to give back to my community where I was raised,” said Shapumba, adding that the campaign is his way of giving back to his people through his profession.
He further stated that certain communities in the region face difficulties in accessing medical care.
“The most urgent issues facing some of these communities include limited access to screening and treatment for illnesses like hypertension, diabetes, and infectious diseases. I decided to host this campaign in Omusati to bring medical care to the people and help them identify some of their medical conditions while it’s early,” Shapumba stated.
The medical outreach service will commence tomorrow at Omwifi Combined School, followed by Olupaka Combined School on Thursday. On Friday, the service will be available at the Outapi Constituency Office and the Outapi Youth Centre, which has a NAPPA Clinic.
The involvement of WBCG was also attributed to the health of Namibia’s communities living along the country’s transport corridors, according to the senior project coordinator, Kenneth Kamwi.
“A healthy community is a prerequisite for a healthy economy. Our business is no exception, as we rely on people, and healthy people are productive people,” he said.
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