No fewer than 100 media practitioners in Ebonyi State have benefited from free medical outreach of the state council of Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ.
The free medical service was organised by the council in collaboration with Medical Women Association of Nigeria in the state.
The outreach was part of the activities lined up by NUJ to mark this year’s Press Week, themed, “The Media Admits Economic Uncertainty.”
The free medical outreach centred on health talks, blood and sugar screening, hepatitis, oral care and treatment, among others.
Over 30 journalists who have teeth-related problems were treated by a team of dentists and counselled after the treatment.
Speaking during the medical outreach, the state chairman of the union, Samson Nwafor, said he included the outreach in the 2024 Press Week events because of the importance of health checks in the lives of journalists, who are often too busy to care for their health due to the nature of journalism.
He opined that the free medical services would go a long way in keeping the journalists fit for their duties.
Nwafor said: “This medical outreach was accommodated in this year’s press week of the Ebonyi State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, to ensure that our members get checks about their health because our duty is such that it keeps us away 24 hours and often, we don’t have the time to go to the hospital to check ourselves, to do certain checkups.
“This is why we said this year we must make it a point of duty to accommodate medical checks on our members and to God be the glory, the Medical Women Association of Nigeria, Ebonyi State chapter led by Dr. Lillian Nwobashi, our sister, came through by collaborating with our council to ensure that this particular programme is a success.”
A former chairman of the union, Tony Nwizi, described the medical outreach as timely given the pressure journalists encounter in their duties, which affects their health.
“It is good that journalists check our health status regularly because we work under pressure in a very intensive environment where we are always under pressure and because of that, it is necessary that we check our health from time to time.
“We have come today to check ourselves as part of the event to mark 2024 NUJ Press Week in the state council,” Nwizi stated.
The President of the Medical Women Association of Nigeria in the state, Dr. Lilian Nwobashi, urged journalists to always go for medical checks to save them from health issues.
Press Week: 100 NUJ members benefit from medical outreach in Ebonyi
