Mr Peter Obi, presidential candidate of Labour Party in the 2023 election, has described healthcare as a critical foundation for the growth and development of any society.
Obi stated this during a visit to the Dame Irene Okwuosa Memorial Hospital, Irefi Oraifite in Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra state.
He commended the humanitarian disposition and team spirit of the health personnel in the facility towards saving lives, especially the offering of free heart surgeries for hundreds of patients in the hospital.
He said: “I’m very impressed with what I saw today. I have said it severally, this kind of facility is what we need to replicate in other sectors by well meaning individuals.
“If we have the kind of doctors I saw here working as a team and saving lives, you can imagine what our country will look like.
“Health is a critical thing. Healthcare is the foundation for development in the society. Once you have health and education, and you are able to pull people out of poverty, you are developing. That is all that is required.
“In this hospital, we see health workers voluntarily caring for people, especially the poor and indigent. I really appreciate Sir Emeka Okwuosa for the great work and I urge him to keep the flag flying.”
Earlier, Executive Director of Sir Emeka Okwuosa Foundation, Dr Chidimma Okoye, said the hospital, since two years of inception had carried out 117 open heart surgeries for adults and pediatrics.
According to her, the 117 surgeries stood at an estimated cost of $457,089,129 (over N7 billion).
She said 47 of the free surgeries were children, while 70 subsidised heart surgeries were for adults.
She said: “The Foundation, in partnership with Vincent Ohaju Obioma Memorial (VOOM) Foundation 6th Biannual medical mission, is involved in open heart surgeries for pediatrics and adults.
“We run medical missions twice a year, carry out surgeries by renowned surgeons with our state-of-the-art equipment, including cath lab, which we pride in, “she said.
