Future Doctors, Today’s Heroes: How Osun Medical Students Are Bridging Public Health Gaps (I)

Abiola Mudasiru never knew his health status until a team of medical students of Osun State University, Osogbo, surprised Ayegbaju Market, Osogbo, with a sensitisation and awareness outreach. 

The outreach which was on Human Immunodeficiency Virus & Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS), marks the 2024 World AIDS Day on 1st December 2024, 

“I am very happy to have been a beneficiary of this, this is my first time of doing this, I have never been tested so I didn’t know my status. Other people are out there who do not know their status but I’m glad to know mine,” were the words of Mudasiru after getting tested for free at the outreach.

The outreach Mudasiru benefitted from is one of the many public health initiatives undertaken by the students in pursuit of a healthier local population. Especially in Nigeria where Non-Communicable Diseases cause about 30% of all deaths. While about 100 million people are at risk of Neglected Tropical Diseases, 170,000 people die from it annually.

The morbidity and consequent mortality as a result of the disease burden continues to take toll on the national economy and productivity as working population spend more time in the hospital seeking cure for ailments that could have been prevented and/or treated before becoming complicated.

The disease burden remains high and attainment of the Sustainable Development Goal 3 – Good Health and Well-being, remains elusive despite government efforts at all levels. Hence, other approaches including local collaboration and efforts become imminent to nip the issues in the bud.

HIV/AIDS remains a major global health challenge, with an estimated 38 million people living with HIV worldwide, and approximately 1.7 million new infections each year.

The United States Consul-General in Nigeria, Will Stevens, while making the figure public during the official launching of the Osun State HIV Treatment Surge organized by Excellence Community Education Welfare Scheme (ECEWS) in 2023 said about 29,936 people were living with HIV/AIDS in Osun State.

In 2018, the United Nation Children Fund trained about forty Osun State secondary school pupils how to make their own sanitary pad in order to discourage unhygienic practices. A set of pads cost about N450 at the time, which was deemed unaffordable. Today, same cost about N800 amidst worsening economic situations and escalating poverty across the country, sanitary pad remains out of reach of the poor.

Health featured prominently as it was the weightiest dimension for measuring poverty in the Nigeria Multidimensional Poverty Index (2022) which revealed 63% of dimensional poverty rate in the country. Health weighed 3/12 making it the most important dimension amongst other dimensions and indicators.

The medical students of Osun State University through their Association – Osun State University Medical Students’ Association (OSUMSA), are addressing these public health challenges and making social impacts within their immediate environment by their student-led initiatives. These initiatives cut across free distribution of menstrual pads to women, counseling and free HIV/AIDS and hemoglobin electrophoresis (genotype) testing, organizing blood drive among others. These students are filling health service gaps while also raising awareness on important public health issues.

The OSUMSA Health Awareness Club

The Chairperson of OSUMSA Health Awareness Club, Jewel Obi, described the club has one driven by a passion for community health and commitment to spreading awareness, bridging the gap between health resources and the underserved, and equipping people with life-saving skills.

“The projects that brought us most impact last year was starting our monthly newsletter named Vital Signs and our recent outreach commemorating World AIDS Day. During the outreach, we carried out free HIV and syphilis tests, as well as blood pressure checks for traders at Ayegbaju Market, Osogbo. Every project we embarked on is centered on meeting the health needs of our community,” Obi said while answering questions on the activities of the Club in 2024.

She added that the projects were inspired by the mission statement of the Club – promoting wellness, one step at a time, which aligned with the vision of creating healthier communities through education and accessible health interventions. “The newsletter, Vital Signs, was borne out of our observation that people often have limited or incorrect knowledge about certain health-related topics. To address this, we decided to provide reliable health information directly from experts in their respective fields, empowering people to make informed decisions about their well-being,” Obi stated.

Obi identified funding as the biggest challenge of the club, which is limiting the Club from reaching her full potential. She also added that low engagement with social media posts of the Club was another challenge. “For instance, we’ve been unable to acquire our own equipment like stethoscopes, sphygmomanometers, and other equipment, we often had to outsource for them. Also, we’re in the digital age, and social media plays a critical role in spreading awareness. Despite our efforts to promote awareness online and offline, people don’t engage with our posts online—especially sharing them—which limits our reach.

While commenting on how the Club has been carrying on despite financial challenges, she commended volunteers and executive members of the club for their commitment and financial contribution towards the club. “Funding for our projects has primarily come from what we call ‘pin drops.’ A pin drop is a monthly donation by members of the club. This money has been instrumental in carrying out our projects, and I must say that our members have been quite generous. Additionally, we’ve received support in the form of free test kits, which were used in our last outreach.

 

“We want to give back to the society” – Former President

The immediate past president of OSUMSA, Emmanuel Akinola, while fielding questions on a blood drive organized by his administration said the program was inspired by the desire to give back to the society. “Blood donation is meant to be done freely so that was why we keyed into that initiative.”

“The blood drive held on the University main campus on 10th June 2024. Though turnout was low because we had to postpone it twice, we had a total of 42 donors. We partnered with the National Blood Service Commission (NBSC) and they came all the way from Ibadan, they supplied the necessary materials for the blood drive,” Emmanuel stated.

He further encouraged eligible blood donors to step forward and donate their blood since getting blood for transfusion is a big deal in hospitals in this part of the world.

Abimbola Ajani who coordinated the blood drive while commenting on how partnership with NBSC contributed to the success of the project said they were able to split the financial burden of the drive reliving the Association of a major burden. “They came with all necessary materials and even went as far as providing refreshments for blood donors. They also came down with skilled technicians and phlebotomists to coordinate the drive,” Abimbola said.

 

“We can do more than educating and providing care” – President Motadegbe

The incumbent President of the Association, Emmanuel Motadegbe, while answering questions on a recently launched charity project of the Association said the initiative was inspired by one of Martin Luther King’s most profound reflections: “What are you doing for others?” He asked rhetorically.

“As medical students, our rural posting in community medicine presented us with a unique opportunity to touch lives beyond the confines of textbooks and hospital wards. Being in the rural area sparked the realization that we could do more than educating and providing care.” Motadegbe explained.

He added that the project which embodies the mission of leaving no one behind while ensuring that their impact resonates through actions and not just words offer tangible support to those in need. Motadegbe said the vision of the project is to foster a culture of compassion and practical support while empowering communities and restoring dignity. He added that the project was being coordinated by the Welfare Director of the Association, Akinwumi Abisola and the Project Chairperson, Popoola Faridah.

“The OSUMSA Charity Project was launched with a call to action, requesting donations of clothes, shoes, bags, cash, sanitary pads, and toiletries. The response was overwhelming and members of the Association came together with remarkable generosity,” the president stated.

He continued: “sanitary pads and toiletries were distributed to pupils across six secondary schools in Boripe Local Government Area of the state during outreach to the schools. These items empowered young girls with dignity and confidence to continue their education uninterrupted. We also delivered clothes, shoes, and bags to correctional centres and Abike children’s Home, Osogbo, providing warmth, hope, and a reminder that they are not forgotten.”

The OSUMSA President decried meagre resources available to his Association as a threat to the expansion of the scope of the intervention. “While the response from within the Association has been commendable, the scale of the need often surpasses what we can meet. Additionally, logistical constraints in reaching remote areas and ensuring equitable distribution remain significant hurdles. However, our resolve remains unshaken as we seek innovative ways to address these challenges,” he explained

When asked on the sustainability plan for the interventions by the Association, he said the Association planned to build partnerships with corporate organizations and leverage grant opportunities. He added that they were already partnering with governmental and non-governmental organizations, including the Excellence Community Education Welfare Scheme (ECEWS), the Association of Resident Doctors, and local philanthropists.

“These partnerships have been instrumental in scaling our impact. For example, through collaboration with ECEWS, we’ve been able to reach more Osun state University freshers. Partnerships amplify our efforts, bringing in additional expertise, resources, and credibility to our projects,” he said.

He further revealed the intention of the Association to expand its scope of the project – integrating skill acquisition programs and entrepreneurial training for young people. “The dream is not just to give aid but to empower individuals to break free from the cycle of dependency. For us, this project is more than an initiative—it is a movement driven by the vision of a better, more equitable world.” he concluded.

Note: This is a two-part series report. Publishing the second part on Friday, January 24th, 2025.

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