|
By ZACHERY PER
THE United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) donated a brand new laptop computer
and refrigerator to the Goroka Base Hospital (GBH) volunteer counselling and
testing (VCT) clinic last week.
The new items complimented a new room for VCT that was refurbished with funding
from Unicef’s’ Goroka zone office.
The laptop will be used to keep updated data on clients and patients that visit
the clinic while the refrigerator will be used to store medicines.
Dr Arnold Calo-oy of Unicef, who handed over the items to the hospital, said
under their health improvement programme, combating HIV/AIDS epidemic in the
country was one of their major priorities.
He said the donations and refurbished rooms for separate male and female
counselling would go a long way towards helping the people.
Dr Calo-oy said Unicef was also assisting to identify communities and schools in
four provinces that came under the Goroka zone office through water and
sanitation programmes.
He said they were also involved in reproductive health education in schools and
training teachers to teach the topic effectively.
They also supported the Mother Child Health (MCH) programme in the rural areas,
especially in the immunisation programmes.
Dr Calo-oy said apart from health programmes, Unicef was also involved in
education and the empowerment of youths to be responsible citizens in the
future.
Unicef’s Goroka office looks after Eastern Highlands, Simbu, Western Highlands
and the East Sepik provinces.
GBH acting chief executive officer Michael Makao and director of medical service
Dr Michael Dokup thanked Unicef for the assistance saying the hospital had
struggled to keep an up-to-date data on patients.
Dr Dokup said the computer would greatly assist them to keep accurate data.
Dr Dokup said Unicef had now joined two other international organisations Global
Fund and Clinton Foundation, who are associating their programmes with the
hospital.
Mr Makao guaranteed that the computer and the refrigerator would be used for
their intended purposes, adding their help would go a long way towards fighting
the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the country.
 
|
