Mobile clinics make a difference

FIFTEEN-year-old Joseph Oseah lost his mother to maternal death five years ago in remote Wesan area that borders Eastern Highlands and Madang.
She died of unsupervised labour and delivery complication of her third son from ill-health and heavy loss of blood in a rural hamlet, and the baby also died.
Oseah spent two days trekking the jungle, crossed rivers and mountains last week into Goroka town to witness the official launch of Goroka district services improvement programme (DSIP) by Goroka MP Thompson Harokaqveh.
He visited and paid attention to the explanations of the important uses of the new state-of-the-art mobile clinics that will help save the lives of people, especially, mothers.
Oseah immediately knew that his late mother had died of a preventable death and had such facility been available at his remote Wesan area; his mother would not have died.
“My mother is one of the many victims of the ineffective health services in rural areas, if such high quality health maternal health services had been provided through mobile clinics, my mother would not have died,” he said.
When asked how he felt about the new clinics, Oseah told The National that he was happy that Goroka district was the first to have a unique service available.
“However, just having these facilities would not prevent maternal deaths,” he said.
“It would largely depend on the performances of health professionals tasked to utilise the facilities to save lives,” Oseah added.
Harokaqveh also outlined his commitment to open up road into Wesan during the launch that should bring more relief to Oseah and his people.
Kevin Marai of the National Broadcasting Corporation and John Doa of RaunRaun Theatre in Goroka became the first patients to be treated for dental problem during the launch at Goroka’s National Park last Friday.
The state-of-the-art mobile clinics were for dental therapy, general clinic and gynaecology clinic for the people of Goroka district.
Harokaqveh purchased them to provide quality health services for the people of his district, doctors and medical specialists would be able to use them in their on-going rural outreach programme.
Supplier Orion Commodities Ltd managing director Conrad Manove and Harokaqveh challenged the people to take ownership of the facilities as they would be used to provide quality health service.
“The people must look after the facilities as their own properties because these mobile clinics have a life span of 30 years and utilise them to reap great benefits,” Manove said.