'SAMIA LOVE' SURGERIES START AT ARUSHA MEDICAL FACILITY

 BY GRACE MACHA IN ARUSHA

Joint replacement surgeries for people suffering from Arthritis have begun in earnest at the Arusha Lutheran Medical Centre (ALMC).

The week-long exercise is being undertaken by a team of 60 specialist doctors from the United States whose last batch landed in Arusha last week.

The surgeries will be offered free of charge courtesy of President Samia Suluhu Hassan's 'Samia Love' initiative targeting health services to those who cannot afford them. 

The exercise is coordinated by the former cabinet minister Lazaro Nyalandu and Singida North MP who said all is set for the joint operations.

He said the coming of the specialist doctors was another indication of the cordial relations between Tanzania under the sixth phase government and the US. 

He lauded the American surgeons for responding to the president's request to come to Tanzania to undertake the surgeries for Arthritis patients.

"Priority will be given to patients from  poor families who cannot afford to pay the medical bills", he told journalists at the Kilimanjaro International Airport (KIA).

Mr.Nyalandu said he wished such surgeries were extended to other parts of the country, notably in Lindi and Mtwara and the southern highlands, western and Lake zone regions. 

One of the leaders of the visiting surgeons Dr. Steve Mayer said their mission was also intended to support President Hassan in improving health delivery services in Tanzania.

ALMC acting director Dr. Goodwill Kivuyo said the American medical team was welcome because Arthritis was increasingly becoming a significant health concern.

According to him, a clinic with the highest number of patients at the church-owned hospital is the one for people diagnosed with Arthritis.

He said the surgeries to be offered by the American doctors would be a blessing because a successful operation would cost a whopping Sh. 28million which many can hardly afford.

Speaking at KIA, the deputy minister for Health Godwin Mollel said the cost of the surgical equipment, drugs and surgeries would amount to Sh. 2 billion.

"The surgical equipment will not be taken back to the US but will remain in the country to further Arthritis treatments", he said, noting that they will be distributed to various hospitals.

He added that the surgeries currently underway at the church-owned medical facility in Arusha was a relief to people risking disability from dislocated joints due to arthritis.

The exercise, code-named 'Operation Walk', will solidify President Hassan's love and sympathy for the low income people who cannot afford hip and knee replacements.

Specialists at the ALMC said initial screening of people suffering from Arthritis in and around Arusha had established that the majority of them needed surgery.

Assessment of their condition was made by the hospital's orthopaedic surgeons "and established that they needed such surgery". 

Arthritis is more pronounced with people in advanced age; notably above 50 years.

The main symptoms of the disease are joint pain and stiffness which typically worsen with age. 

The most common types of arthritis are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. 

Treatments vary depending on the types of arthritis. The main goals of the treatment against the disease is to reduce symptoms and improve quality of life.