REPORT OF AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2023 MEDICAL MISSION TO ABUJA, NIGERIA

In response to an invitation by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), the Moses Lake Medical Team (MLMT) conducted a free medical outreach in Abuja, the Federal Capital of Nigeria from August 25, 2023, through September 9, 2023. The medical mission was in support of the Annual Conference of the NBA. A total of 14 MLMT members (7 from Moses Lake area and seven from Chile) participated in this exercise. In addition, a group of providers from the University College Hospital (UCH) from Ibadan in Oyo State, Nigeria, led by Dr. Richard Omoyeni, an Orthopedic Surgeon, took part in this medical mission. An Emergency Room (ER) doctor from Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH), Zaria, in Kaduna State, Nigeria, Dr. Anointed Tende, was also available to render free medical consultations. The providers from the Medicaid Foundation, and providers from Garki Hospital, both in Abuja were also on hand to help during this exercise. Dr. Aminu Bunza from Kebbi State, who happens to be a Special Adviser on Health Matters to the Kebbi State Governor, also participated in this outreach. We utilized three main venues for this mission. The National Stadium, the NBA Headquarters, and Garki General Hospital. The Medicaid Foundation providers saw patients at the National Stadium, where they dealt with those in need of cancer screenings. The NBA used the National Stadium in Abuja for their 2023 Annual Conference. As a result, majority of the cases addressed at this venue were mostly lawyers and their relatives. We conducted primary healthcare procedures at the NBA Headquarters. At this venue, a wide range of patients, mostly the indigenes who had limited means of paying for their medical services received treatments. We referred Patients needing surgical interventions from both venues to Garki Hospital. The medical and surgical providers at Garki Hospital were extremely generous and kind to our team. Even though they had their regular patients scheduled for treatments, the staff members were very accommodating and understanding in allowing us to provide needed services to our patients. In summary, during this two-week outreach, we saw a total of 5,000 patients performed 113 surgical procedures, dispensed over 20,000 prescriptions, while attending to over two hundred dental patients. We dispensed over 650 pairs of eyeglasses, and 1089 patients were presented to Garki Hospital for surgical consultations.