Hope rises for eye patients as Aihwa Vision Care Ngor-Okpala begins operations

In a significant milestone, the Aihwa Integrated Medical Clinic, located along Sam Mbakwe Cargo Airport, Ngor-Okpala LGA, Imo State, has brought good news to the Imo State and southeast eye patients with the commissioning of its ultramodern Aihwa Vision Care. The February 5, 2025, commissioning, kicked off vision related diagnoses and treatments at the center with experts in eye care practice both within and outside Nigeria in attendance.

Remarkably, Aihwa Integrated Medical Clinic which was commissioned in 2021 by former President Goodluck Jonathan, has become a place of succour for patients with various health challenges as the center is fully equipped with advanced instruments, including High Definition (HD) technologies as well as competent personnel. Aihwa Medical Clinic is distinguished by its American standard in healthcare delivery.

Meanwhile, the Aihwa Vision Care, forming part of the integrated healthcare delivery at the center, brings unprecedented breakthrough to the eye health sector in Imo State and the southeast, serving as the only vision care facility in the state and the entire region that brings solutions to high magnitude retinal problems, including diabetic retinopathy which before now forced patients to travel to Kaduna, Abuja and Lagos in search for treatment.

The ceremony had a technical session aimed at strengthening the capacities of eye care providers in Imo State and beyond, while treatments, including surgeries were administered to numerous patients in attendance. Foreign and local eye care experts and partners of Aihwa Vision Care were handy to render expertise. They included: the Founder of Retina Care International, United States, Dr. John Wroblewski; Dr. Ann Marie, United States and Dr. H. O Salau from the National Eye Center, Kaduna.

Speaking on his motivation, the Founder of Aihwa Integrated Medical Clinic, Rev. Fr. Kenny Udumka (Cssp), noted that he was driven by patriotism to bring the health facility to the state, despite pressures for him to build it elsewhere. He further said that he considered the imperative of revolutionizing healthcare delivery so that the people of Imo State and the southeast could benefit.

The Maryland, US-based Clinical Counselor and clergyman also informed his audience that the Aihwa Vision Care was conceived to bring succour to the numerous eye patients in the state and the southeast who are distressed by the absence of an advanced eye care center capable of handling their vision challenges, including diabetic retinopathy. Fr. Udumka expressed satisfaction that the center would meet its objectives and save patients from traveling to Lagos, Abuja or Kaduna for treatment on retinal problems.

On his own, Dr. John Wroblewski, disclosed that he left the US because of the significant need for quality eye care in Imo State and surrounding states. He highlighted the imperative of confronting vision related challenges, especially retinal problems with diabetes as a leading cause. Promising to use the center to save eye patients, Dr. Wroblewski, counseled Imolites to always ensure blood pressure, weight, blood sugar and cholesterol control to manage their eye health.

Commissioning the Aihwa Vision Care, the National President of the Nigerian Optometric Association (NOA), Dr. Anderson Chimeziri, hailed the project as strategic and thoughtful. He recounted the difficulties patients face traveling to distant places to get treatment for retinal problems because such facility was not in Imo State and the southeast before the establishment of Aihwa Vision Care. He said that Optometrists would partner with the center, regretting the high rate of glaucoma and emerging cases of diabetic retinopathy in the southeast.

While the Imo State Chairman of NOA, Dr. Patrick Iwuchukwu, expressed joy that Aihwa Vision Care; a one stop facility would now serve as a referral center for patients with retinal disorders, describing the commissioning ceremony as a milestone in eye care delivery in Imo State and the southeast. He enumerated the health and economic benefits of the facility, advocating for sustainability and partnership with government through health financing mechanism which grants patients insurance cover.

Interacting with newsmen, the Nigerian Liaison Officer of Aihwa Integrated Medical Clinic, Dr. Nelly Jacobs disclosed that the facility was designed to provide holistic healthcare that addresses the patient’s mind and body. She outlined services at the beautiful facility to include: healthcare services, table water production, restaurant/kitchen services and emergency quick response services among others, calling the center a place of restoration and rejuvenation.

By Ifeanyichukwu Ibe.

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