By Usman Abubakar, in Maiduguri
Over 600 patients of kidney diseases in Yobe State now receive free kidney dialysis monthly under a programme implemented for that purpose by the state government.
The free treatment is offered at the Yobe State University Teaching Hospital (YSUTH).
The Yobe State Commissioner of Home Affairs, Information and Culture, Abdullahi Bego, made this disclosure to newsmen at the end of the quarterly meeting of commissioners of information of APC-governed states in Maiduguri on Thursday October 16.
Bego said the free dialysis was initiated by the immediate past administration of Governor Ibrahim Gaidam, and now consolidated and implemented by the current administration of Governor Mai Mala Buni to save lives in the state known for the prevalence of the disease.
He said the disease is more prevalent in Jakusko, Nguru, Gashua, Yusufari LGAs and many other communities in Northern parts of the state.
“Yobe state has many cases of kidney disease, as most of the communities on the shores of Yobe/Kumadugu River in northern part of the state suffered most,” the Yobe State government salesman confirmed.
To tackle the disease at its root causes, the commissioner said the Yobe State Government has established a fully-equipped Biomedical Science Research and Training Centre located at the College of Medical Science, Yobe State University, as it is also collaborating with University of Sussex, United Kingdom and some Researchers, including a US-based Dr. Mahmoud Bukar Maina, a British-Nigerian neuroscientist and educator whose research is focused on the cellular and molecular pathogenesis in Alzheimer’s disease.
The impact of the state government’s initiative according to Bego, goes beyond providing immediate relief and medical consumables, but to also delve into the causes of the kidney disease epidemic.
He also explained that, Governor Buni who have since declared State of Emergency in the health sector, has constructed over 400-bed capacity at Mamman Ali Maternal and Child Complex hitherto commissioned by former late President Muhammadu Buhari.
The state of the art facility located within the premises of YSUTH, he disclosed, not only saves lives, but also serves as referral and research centre in addressing maternal mortality in the North East region.
