By Tendai Rupapa and Walter Nyamukondiwa
Access to health care services is critical to good health, yet rural communities face a myriad of barriers and First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa, through her Angel of Hope Foundation, has mobilised a team of 18 medical professionals from the United States of America to provide free medical treatment to the country’s marginalised communities.
Amai Mnangagwa, who is also the Health and Child Care Ambassador, yesterday accompanied the team to the Mola community in Nyaminyami Rural, Kariba District, where the community is suffering from a rare condition of swelling stomachs resulting in them vomiting blood.
Twenty deaths have so far been recorded in the area since 2009.
Addressing villagers, the First Lady said she was touched by the plight of the people in the Mola community who have been battling the condition which has been found to be as a result of damage to the liver owing to untreated bilharzia.
“When I was briefed about the disease that is affecting this community, I was touched,” she said.
“Today I have come with a team of medical doctors to diagnose and treat you all of various ailments. Ndauya nawo madhokotera kuti vaongorore chirwere chiri kuno ichi nezvimwewo zvirwere zvakasiyana-siyana.
“Chirwere ichochi chekuzvimba matumbu nekurutsa ropa hachina kutanga nhasi, chakatanga 2009 chaiyo. Ipo pano ndatoona madzimai nevana with swollen stomachs due to this condition and the doctors are doing their best to assist them.”
The First Lady urged the villagers to take advantage of the outreach programme and get checked. She also thanked the doctors for their assistance.
“I have been working with these doctors for a long time. They have been to various parts of the country especially vulnerable communities like Kanyemba and Binga,” she said.
“Before they came here (Mola) they were in Chiredzi and Masvingo offering free medical treatment.
“Ndinotenda nechido chavo chekubatsira mhuri yeZimbabwe vachipinda neni munzvimbo dzinonzi hadzisvikike. May God bless them all.”
The First Lady put smiles on the faces of the Mola villagers when she gave them an assortment of goods that included rice, sugar, cooking oil, bathing soap and petroleum jelly.
She also gave the elderly blankets while teenage girls received sanitary wear. Children also walked away with a variety of toys. Expecting mothers also received preparation and hygiene kits. The Tonga-speaking community thanked Amai Mnangagwa for her kindness and love.
Seventy-eight-year-old Mrs Kwathelani Pasvana, who also received treatment, showered the First Lady with praises.
“We always felt neglected and looked down upon but Amai’s visit has given us a ray of hope. What she has done for us will linger in our minds for a long time.”
Chief Mola (Champion Rare) hailed the visit by the First Lady and her gesture in bringing in a team of medical doctors to provide free treatment. He said Mola, being a remote area, the visit by the First Lady was a first of its kind.
“As a community we are grateful to the First Lady for remembering us and bringing in doctors to attend to our healthcare needs. It is very expensive to get specialised medical care, which is mostly found at Siakobvu Clinic, Karoi and Kariba,” he said.
“Having so many doctors at once has never happened in our area and we hope some of the challenges in health that we face like the swelling of stomachs among our people and death due to bleeding will be addressed.”
He said such initiatives (bringing in doctors) should be commended and maintained so that people have easy access to healthcare services.
Medical director of the team Dr Jerad Morton said they came to Zimbabwe at the request of the First Lady. “We are working together with the Angel of Hope Foundation and local doctors to offer free medical services to vulnerable communities,” he said.
“We want to try and see if we can figure out some of the medical problems people in these areas are facing and try to find solutions.
“There are unique problems in this area (Mola) such as patients with abdominal swelling and today we have treated more than 50 patients with that condition. I think we can work together with local doctors and try to find solutions on how to help them.”
He said short- and long-term solutions needed to be devised to address the challenges. The conditions, he said, required long-term treatment and they would also work with the Ministry of Health and Child Care.
“We will try and work with the Public Health Department to clean the water sources and educate the villagers on hygiene,” he said.
There was an observation that most villagers did not have toilets forcing them to use open spaces thereby increasing chances of water-borne diseases spreading. The doctors referred five of the most serious cases to Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital for further treatment. Among the doctors were opticians, dentists and general practitioners who offered their services.
Dr Morton said besides the swelling of stomachs, some of the ailments diagnosed were high blood pressure and HIV/AIDS.
Turning to the food situation in the area, the villagers expressed concern at the manner in which Government food relief was being distributed.
Of major concern was that they were being made to pay between $10 and $20 per bag, which was said to be for transport.
They said there was no transparency in how the money was used. Chief Mola said some of those in leadership positions were allegedly selling inputs and food relief to the people.
He said due to this, the elderly and the less privileged were failing to access the aid. Mashonaland West Minister of State Mary Mliswa-Chikoka thanked the First Lady for bringing the doctors to the Mola community.