The Right Aid Health Foundation has provided free medical and surgical care to vulnerable residents of Lagos, with more than 3,000 patients benefiting from its community-based healthcare interventions over the past decade.
The initiative, organised to commemorate the foundation’s 10th anniversary, featured a month-long medical and surgical outreach from August 1 to 31, 2026, at One Life Hospital in Oshodi/Isolo Local Government Area, Lagos.
The programme, conducted in collaboration with Nelife Hospital and Africa Vision Tract House Society (AVTHS), provided beneficiaries with clinical consultations, ophthalmic services, optometric assessment, laboratory investigations, diagnostic procedures and pharmaceutical care.
The outreach also incorporated screening for breast, cervical and prostate diseases, alongside health education, counselling and psychosocial support.
The surgical arm covered several conditions requiring operative management, including cataract and pterygium, uterine fibroids, goitre, inguinal and femoral hernias, umbilical hernia, appendicitis, lipoma, breast masses, breast malignancies and benign prostatic enlargement.
Beneficiaries selected for surgical intervention underwent clinical assessment and appropriate pre-operative evaluation to determine their suitability for surgery before the procedures were carried out.
Speaking after the intervention, some beneficiaries expressed satisfaction with the professionalism, courage and dedication demonstrated by the surgical personnel throughout the procedures and post-operative care.
They described the intervention as a major relief, saying they were grateful to have recovered from medical conditions that had affected their health and quality of life for extended periods.
One of the beneficiaries said the free treatment had restored her hope, while another expressed appreciation to the foundation and the medical team for providing access to care that would otherwise have been financially difficult to afford.
Speaking on the intervention, the foundation’s founder, Prof. Oyebola Olubodun Adekola, a professor of anaesthesia and critical care, said the organisation remained committed to improving access to essential healthcare services for medically underserved populations.
Adekola expressed appreciation to medical personnel, volunteers, donors, corporate partners and other stakeholders whose contributions had sustained the foundation’s humanitarian activities.
She appealed for increased financial and institutional support, noting that a significant number of indigent patients continue to present with surgical conditions but are unable to meet the financial requirements for definitive treatment.
According to her, the foundation’s interventions are aimed at reducing out-of-pocket healthcare expenditure and ensuring that socioeconomic circumstances do not prevent patients from receiving timely medical and surgical care.
Adekola said the foundation hoped to scale up its community health programmes beyond Lagos and extend its services to other underserved populations across Nigeria during the next decade.
She also identified the migration of healthcare professionals, popularly referred to as the “Japa syndrome”, as a major concern for Nigeria’s health system.
She called for improved remuneration, professional development opportunities, welfare packages and working conditions for healthcare workers to strengthen retention and reduce the loss of skilled personnel to other countries.
The outreach further provided health promotion, patient counselling, spiritual support and other welfare services as part of the foundation’s integrated approach to community healthcare.
The programme received support from Airtel, RayPower, Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), College of Medicine, Lagos, Shomolu Local Government, Nelife Hospital and other partners.
The foundation said the initiative reflected its decade-long commitment to strengthening access to quality healthcare, promoting early detection of diseases and restoring hope among vulnerable communities.
The anniversary outreach was organised under the theme: “Quality Healthcare. Compassionate Service. Restoring Hope.”