Death through hernia threatened Mr Soji Oyedele’s triplets, who  were his source of joy, but God rescued them through Ogun State government’s health intervention programme, OGRUMED Plus, reports Ayokunle Ewuoso.

For Mr. Soji Oyedele, an artisan and a middle aged man, his joy knew no bounds when news filtered in that his wife had given birth to triplets, all male, a year and some months ago. But as fate would have it, according to the father of the triplets, named Israel, Isaiah and Isaac, the joy of becoming a  not just a father, but the father of triplets, turned into sorrow, after discovering that their scrotums were developing day by day and after applying all the medications prescribed by native doctors he had visited for help, the situation was becoming worse  by the day.

Oyedele, while recounting his ordeal, said, “I have visited so many native doctors and had spent the little money I had, but all to no avail. At a time, we were asked to see a medical doctor.It was the doctor who discovered that my children were actually suffering from hernia which the doctor said would cost me about N150,000 to be operated upon.”

The  father of the triplets,  went about trying to raise  the amount from individuals and organisations, yet  he could not get the money to free his children from the medical problem. He however, sought solace in God believing that one day, “mother luck” would smile at him.

One fateful  morning, according to him, while listening to the radio, there was an announcement on a local radio station, by the Ogun State Ministry of Health, asking people who required surgical, medical and gynaecological intervention to come to the State Hospital in Ilaro, Yewa South Local Government area of the state, and that these would be done free by medical experts put together by the state government under the programme tagged “OGRUMED PLUS”.

“Initially, I did not believe that any government could come up with such a laudable programme, though, I’ve heard such announcements before,  my belief had always been that, it was a programme  inaugurated purposely to solve the medical problems of PDP members,” Oyedele recounted.
Giving more accounts, Oyedele said, he went to Ilaro and registered his children for the operation without being asked to pay a kobo or even the  political party he belonged to.

The Ogun State Rural Medical Scheme (OGRUMED), was conceptualized and inaugurated by the Otunba Gbenga Daniel-led administration in April 2004, with the aim of creating a mechanism that would drive specialist medicare and make it available to the people at the grass roots, free of charge.

The medical programme was, however, rebranded (OGRUMED PLUS), and flagged off by the governor on Tuesday, 2 December, 2009, for a more efficient and better health care service delivery to the people of the state.

Giving reasons why the programme had to be rebranded, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Isiaq Kunle Salako, stated that before his assumption of office at the  ministry of health, the programme was conceptualized initially as a curative strategy, adding that with the formal flag off of the rebranded “OGRUMED PLUS,” government had added a preventive strategy.

It must be placed on record that since the inception of the medical programme, led by Dr Taiwo Sogunle, which has carried out surgical operations in hermiorhaphy, hermiotomy, appendectomomy, myomectomy, thyroidectomy, hysterectomy, breast lump, lymphoma and ganglim,  there has been no single case of casualty.

The medical programme, which has no political undertone of any kind, according to Dr. Salako, since inception, had successfully carried out 3,492 general surgeries, 65 gynaecolocigical surgeries and 1,069 dental surgeries.

Similarly, he said that 140,872 people were treated as out patients while 5,745 glasses were distributed to people with eye problems free of charge, adding that in all about  N5b had been expended on the programme by the state government.

OGRUMED PLUS, obviously a success story, had set for itself a monthly target of at least 100 free surgeries,  1,000 free eye glasses, treatment of 10,000 patients as out patients in addition to the provision of preventive care. In addition, it has created awareness campaign on cancers and non communicable diseases.

The programme which has received commendations from people from all walks of life, has been able to go round all the 20 local government areas of the state more than twice, giving free medicare to the people particularly in the rural areas.

Ewuoso is the Public Relations Officer for Ogun State Ministry of Health.

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