City residents get free health check-up

A NON-Governmental Organisation — You Have It In You Foundation — whose mandate is to improve the health of young women last week held a health awareness campaign for girls at Inyathi Vocational Training Centre in Mpopoma, Bulawayo.

The organisation, which was founded by Ms Thulisile Mzwi, Ms Vuyiswa Mashengele and Ms Lorraine Bere in 2014, offered the females aged between five and 21 free education on health, check-ups, counselling and a library with material on the issues.

Ms Mashengele said the campaign was aimed at providing health check-ups to young women so that they can also grow up knowing some of the issues related to the anatomy of a woman's body.

"This is a way of giving back to the community and the less privileged children. The majority of the children registered with us come from poor backgrounds and have never been checked by medical practitioners. This is a chance for them to have proper health checks," she said.

Doctors and dentists from the New Life Covenant Church also volunteered to offer free consultation and assist the parents on how to serve healthy foods and a balanced diet to avoid malnutrition and diseases that can be caused by malnutrition.

New Life Covenant Church young adults leader Mr Munyaradzi Munyaradzi said they were honoured to be part of the event as they believe in helping the less privileged in the community.

One of the doctors who was offering the free treatment, Dr Enia Chitiyo said they were giving general checkups to the children, assessing them on malnutrition and physical abnormalities.

"Noting that many children came from poor families and do not stay with their parents it was a challenge to get specific information on the children. We are also giving free toothbrushes to the children," said Dr Chitiyo.

A Mpopoma resident Mrs Thembi Dube who is a guardian to one of the girls who was treated said she was happy that the organisation has come to the rescue of females who are less privileged in the communities.