A single room shop donated by a community member in Kano State has become a place where locals receive treatment for sicknesses while waiting for further medical care.
Hundreds of women and children in Baita village of Gezawa Local Government Area of Kano State receive medical attention in a shop equipped with a bed, which was later turned into a primary health centre, Weekend Trust reports.
Residents now find succour in this one-bed health centre since the only health facility in the village built in the 1990s by the government of Kabiru Gaya was abandoned by health workers and community members because of its dilapidated state, with the fear that its walls could give in at any time.
The health centre started operation when a community member, Hajiya Zuwaire Dalhatu, donated the shop in her house to serve as a dispensary and treatment centre for people living in the area.
She told Weekend Trust that the gesture gave her pleasure because people all over the village come to the centre for medical attention.
On why she donated her shop for use as a health facility, Hajiya Zuwaire said she feared that if nothing was done, the only government-owned health centre in the community may be relocated; hence there was the need to provide a temporary place.
“I did not want the clinic to be taken elsewhere, so I decided to donate the shop. We are happy to see people coming here to receive medical attention,” she said.
Baita village, located close to the Minjibir-Wasai dam, is a remote area that is prone to flood, making movement difficult for community members during the rainy season.
Women from neighbouring villages also attend the one-bed health centre for prenatal and antenatal care.
When Weekend Trust visited the village, a lot of women were being attended to in the small shop.
Commenting on the facility, the chairman of Gezawa Local Government, Mukaddas Jogona, said his council had written to the state Ministry of Health, asking for the upgrade of the facility to a 10-bed health centre.
“The facility was abandoned for nearly 10 years, but God willing, we will upgrade it to a 10-bed health centre to cater to the needs of the people in the area,” the chairman told our correspondent during a telephone conversation.
