A Free Mobile Health Camp was inaugurated by Smt. Preeti Kumari, IAS, SDO (C), Margherita at the Office of the SDO(C), Margherita today. The camp was organised by the Margherita Sub-Divisional (Civil) Administration in association with the District Health Society, Tinsukia and Red Cross Society, Margherita Sub-district Committee. The Officers and staff of the Margherita Sub-Divisional Administration got themselves checked at the camp and free medicines and basic tests were also provided by the medical team led by Dr. Keshab Goswami, SDM &HO, Ketetong.
Apart from the SDO(C) office, the health camp was also set up for the general public by the Mobile Medical Unit in different areas of Margherita town like Balukhat High school, Borgolai, Rajiv Gandhi Sports complex, Ledo Bazar and Durgabari.
Subsequently a Plantation Drive was also organised within the premises of the O/o SDO(C), Margherita.
The Health Camp and the Plantation drive were organised on the occasion of Lachit Divas marking the 400th birth anniversary celebration of Bir Lachit Barphukan- the greatest Military General of Assam. Swasthya Sewa Abhiyan in Margherita Tea Estate under Tinsukia District.
Every individual has the right to health care, but a lack of quality infrastructure, scarcity of competent medical personnel, and lack of access to essential medicines and medical facilities prevent Indian residents from receiving it.
Health camps are effective strategies used by both government and non-government organizations, associations, and societies of varying scope and interest.A health camp’s main goal and scope are to spread health care facilities in the given area, promote health care, early screening, and detection of disease, reach the unreached community population, and raise awareness of various diseases.
Swasthya Sewa Abhiyan a special medical camp held on tuesday at the hospital premises of Margherita Tea garden hospital under Ketetong Block PHC in Tinsukia. The camp was formally inaugurated by newly posted Margherita Sub divisional officer(civil) Preeti Kumari, IAS in the presence of senior health officials from district and block level of Tinsukia. The camp was organised with a vision to bring medical specialists, disgnostic tests, medical facilities, especially for mother and child in one location for facilitating health services for the people, in addition to other specialists like ophthalmic, ENT, Dental etc.
Margherita TE hospital has a population coverage 5430. The nearest govt health facility nearest to the camp site is Margherita FRU and the distance between Margherita FRU and the camp site is 3km. There are two more tea gardens adjacent to Margherita Tea Estate that is Namdang Tea Estate and Dirok Tea Estate. All the pregnant women from these three gardens were mobilized through 108 ambulances to the camp for ANC check up and diagnostics.
Organizing a health camp provides an opportunity for the need assessment of the community, also helps in finding the disease burden of the community. It also helps the community in availing quality primary health-care services at their doorstep. The Health and Family Welfare Department, Tinsukia had made arrangements for the diagnosis of patients with serious ailments and the camp had the facility to conduct examinations like Hemoglobin, Urine, blood glucose etc including ECG which are free of cost.
Specialist Doctors like gynaecologists, Pediatrician, Medicine, Eye, etc participated in the camp from different parts of the district. Health Officials from different umbrella programs as Leprosy, Malaria , TB eradication and Mental health program also participated in the camp.
As a whole 848 beneficiaries were benefited from the health camp out of which 599 were screened for general ailments, 133 were pregnant women and 116 children from which 10 were identified as Severe acute malnourished children who screened and treated for different ailments.
The objective of conducting the health camp was to create awareness of general health among the people, provide general health care services and counseling them on basic healthcare and hygiene, so that everyone could easily understand the concept. While registrations were being done, audio visuals were shown and plays based on health & hygiene, Dengue, Typhoid, and Diarrhea etc. were being performed for awareness of the people.
Physicians distributed free medicines to the patients who came to the testing camps and gave lifestyle related advice including catering so that the diseases could be properly treated and controlled. The health camp was a huge success with overwhelming response from the local people.
