Follow Us on Google
From David Onwuchekwa, Nnewi
In the spirit of think-home-philosophy, Nnewi indigenes resident in Atlanta, United States of America have come to the rescue of indigent mothers at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital (NAUTH), Nnewi, Anambra State who could not pay their bills.
Many of the women who were delivered of their babies and discharged by the hospital management but could not foot their bills said they had been stranded at the maternity wards for weeks after their discharge.
The beneficiaries shedded tears of joy after the bills had been settled. Some of the individual bills were over N250,000 and many of the mothers said they had spent more than two weeks after their discharge waiting for help. They all prayed for their benefactors.
The exercise which the benefactors called awaiting bills settlement took the team to the intensive care unit of the hospital where some of the babies with complications on delivery were being taken care of.
Delegates from Atlanta were Dr Mike Okeke and Mrs Unoaku Ekwegbalu who joined Mrs Grace Okeke as coordinator and Mrs Egbonu Chioma.
Dr Okeke said that the benefactors contributed N1.5 million for the rescue operation.
“We are here as delegates, Mrs Ekwegbalu and myself from Atlanta part of Nnewi Union representing the group. We are touched because these people could not pay their bills.
“What we are doing now is part of our philanthropic activities. We are here to assist those who are stranded in the hospital because they can’t pay their bills. We got information about that and we are here to release them.
“We contributed money to help offset the bills. Every year we focus on different things. Sometimes motherless babies, sometimes we focus on people with kidney problem. This time we focus on those who are unable to pay their hospital bills. When we earmark any project, we kind of solicit donation from members. This year we contributed N1.5 million for the help, ” Dr Okeke said.
Mrs Ekwegbalu noted that the idea was to give succour to those indigent mothers to put smiles on their faces.
Mrs Okeke said the team had earlier investigated those who really needed help, those who had overstayed because of their inability to pay their bills.
“Somebody that is discharged is supposed to go home or on the following day. But where they cannot afford to pay their bills, they stay like one week, two weeks like you see in the ward.
“Some of them have stayed up to three weeks after discharge. Such people are the ones we try to help out. Like in 2020 during the Covid-19 lockdown, the same Nnewi indigenes resident in Atlanta sent in money to help the less privileged back home including widows. We reached out to different parts of the four quarters of Nnewi.
“This time around our visit didn’t stop at the teaching hospital, we extended it to other hospitals in Nnewi. The Atlanta people are wonderful people. They never considered the size of the bill. May God continue to be with them. Our people are very fortunate, ” Mrs Okeke said.
On her part, Mrs Egbonu said when she was invited to join the team for the hospital visit, that she was full of joy that there were still people who remembered the poor in that dimension. She said God would continue to bless them.
Receiving the team, the Chief Medical Director of the NAUTH, Dr Joseph Ugboaja thanked the Nnewi indigenes for their think-home-philosophy and kind gesture.
Dr Ugboaja told them that the hospital was interested in partnership and collaboration and how it could be helped to link up with high-ranking health institutions and individuals from Nnewi and Anambra State generally “for the ongoing transformation of the NAUTH.”
“Help get equipment, skill acquisition and collaborative training. Top hospitals can give lectures and demonstrations. We would like to speak with Nnewi specialists in US and other countries.
“We want to practice with the best skills. We are developing our specialties and we need to build good structures, ” Dr Ugboaja said.
Picture: Some of the stranded mothers and the rescue team.
