By Chris Chikelue
A Canada-based medical doctor, Dr. Charles Kene Ojukwu, has donated medical equipment to the Primary Health Centre (PHC) at Christ the King Parish, Abatete, in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State, to strengthen maternal and newborn healthcare delivery.
The donation, made on October 11 through the Charles Kene Ojukwu Initiative Foundation, aligns with Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s call for public-private partnerships to accelerate development across the state.
According to Ojukwu, the intervention was designed to complement the state government’s efforts to improve access to quality maternal and newborn healthcare services, particularly in underserved communities.
The presentation took place in the presence of the Archbishop of Onitsha and Metropolitan of the Onitsha Ecclesiastical Province, Most Rev. Valerian Maduka Okeke, who blessed the donated equipment and the donor.
The equipment included an autoclave machine, suction machine, cardiac monitor, oxygen cylinder with trolley, delivery bed, digital fetal Doppler, nebuliser machine, diagnostic ultrasound machine and phototherapy machine. The intervention also covered the provision of labour and minor surgical equipment, as well as the repainting of the health centre.
Commending the donor, the Anambra State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Afam Obidike, who represented the state government, called on other well-meaning individuals and organisations to emulate the gesture. He noted that the donation would improve access to essential maternal and newborn healthcare services at the facility.
Explaining the functions of the donated equipment, Ojukwu said the diagnostic ultrasound machine would enable pregnant women to access ultrasound scans at the centre, while the phototherapy machine would help healthcare workers treat newborns suffering from jaundice.
He added that the nebuliser and suction machines would support emergency interventions, while the autoclave machine would facilitate the sterilisation of medical instruments.
According to him, the delivery bed and minor surgical equipment would assist midwives in carrying out essential procedures, including the suturing of lacerations and episiotomies.
Ojukwu said the initiative was aimed at strengthening healthcare delivery and contributing to efforts to reduce maternal and child mortality in Abatete and neighbouring communities.
Chris Chikelue is of the Ministry of Information and Value Reformation, Anambra State
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