Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (MMUST) recently had an opportunity to showcase their expertise in Eye Care Health following an invite by the Baringo County Government to participate in a medical camp. This event was organized to offer free medical services to the Tenges community in partnership with Tenges Development Forum (TDF). The other partners involved in the camp included Mediheal Group of Hospitals, Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC), Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), Baringo County Government and National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). The main objectives of the outreach were Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), supporting the government universal health care initiative, educating the community about health covers and offering free medical services.
The outreach provided a practical learning opportunity to our fifth year medical students who took part in eye screening and diagnosis of patients. “We are grateful to the University for facilitating us to participate in the outreach. This is an opportunity that has enabled us to practice our careers in real time,” said Naomi Wanyama, one of the students.
The medical solutions offered to the patients mainly involved issuance of eye drops and spectacles depending on the seriousness of the patients’ condition. Referrals were also administered to extreme cases that required more attention and expertise that could not be offered then. Mr. Simon Bett, one of the patients who was a beneficiary of the MMUST eye care screening said he was happy with the organizers of the event and MMUST in particular for honoring the invitation and coming to the grounds to support their community. Baringo County has had a perennial problem with regard to provision of sufficient medical facilities to take care of the large numbers of people living in the region.
Speaking during the outreach, Mr. Alfred Ragot who stepped in as Chairman of the Optometry department, thanked the University for allowing them to take part in the exercise which provided an opportunity to market the services offered by MMUST. He articulated that he looks forward to see Optometry department grow to become a School with Pediatric Optometry, Low vision Optometry and Contact Lens Optometry departments.
By Linet Owuor, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
