Army Week: Over 63,000 patients treated as infrastructure gets boost

A total of 63,783 patients across the country received treatment, including surgery, during the ongoing Army Week. This was revealed Tuesday in Kigali by Lt Col René Ngendahimana, acting Defence and Military Spokesperson, during a news conference on the Army Week’s progress. Army Week coordinator Lt Col Ndore Rurinda highlights some of the achievements of the activities during the news conference. (Sam Ngendahimana) The operation was officially launched in May 4, 2017 and has achieved a lot in many sectors, especially health, infrastructure, agriculture, among others, according to officials. Ngendahimana said that it was the military’s responsibility to contribute towards citizens’ development, not only in protecting the country’s borders, but ensuring human security in general. The Acting RDF Spokesperson Lt Col Rene Ngendahimana(C) addresses the media on the achievements of Army Week as Lt Col Dr King Gacondo looks on ( Sam Ngendahimana) He added that the Army Week aims at uplifting the welfare of Rwandans and contributing to the national development in general. According to Ngendahimana, RDF’s medical teams treated various cases at over 30 hospitals and health centers across the country. A medical operation at Munini Hospital in Nyaruguru District. Some 2,359 houses for the vulnerable were built while 43 others are still under construction, he said. Up to 219 bridges were built or rehabilitated as well as 135km of feeder roads. 2,779 toilets have been put in place while about 8kilometers of water supply points were connected in Nyagatare and Nyanza districts. Fight against Army Worm. Some 3,462 hectares of marshland and hillsides were also cultivated, he added. Other activities conducted include; construction of cowsheds and the successful fight against Armyworm outbreak on about 8,000ha countrywide. Other Army Week activities include environmental protection campaigns as well as improving access to energy using 0ff-grid-solar installations among others. Dental treatment at Kibeho Health Center in Nyaruguru. Call for improved hygiene The majority of cases of diseases that were treated during the Army Week are related to poor hygiene and would not have occurred if the public were to promote hygiene in their families and environs, according to Lt Col Dr King Gacondo. Gacondo, a doctor at Rwanda Military Hospital Kanombe, is in charge of medical services during Army Week. “What we realised as a challenge is that most of the diseases we treated are related to poor hygiene, you find those cases in dental patients, in eye patients and in others, if hygiene was improved in society, the number of such cases would reduce,” he said. During the Army Week, RDF members also donated blood. Other cases, he said, are those of people who needed treatment but could not access it due to lack of community health based insurance (Mutuelle de Santé). editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Army Week: Over 63,000 patients treated as infrastructure gets boost