Public health outreach activities were expanded across South and North Andaman in January as the Health Department rolled out a series of targeted interventions, including a Mini Reproductive and Child Health (RCH) Camp, village-level outreach services and school health programmes aimed at improving access to essential healthcare.
As part of these efforts, the Reproductive and Child Health Programme (RCH-II) under the Union Territory Health Mission, in association with the Directorate of Health Services and ANIIMS, announced a Mini RCH Camp scheduled to be held on January 17 at the Panchayat Hall, Collinpur, under PHC Tushnabad. The camp is intended to provide specialist consultations and basic healthcare services to residents of the area.
According to the programme details, medical services at the camp will be provided by specialists including a gynaecologist, paediatrician, ENT specialist and dental surgeon. The initiative aims to bring focused maternal and child healthcare services closer to communities, particularly for patients who may otherwise face challenges in accessing specialist care.
Parallel to this, outreach health services were conducted in North Andaman under Ayushman Arogya Mandir Mohanpur, operating under the supervision of Dr. R.P. Hospital, Mayabunder. An outreach health camp was organised at Borang, where general medical consultations were offered, medicines were distributed and patients requiring further evaluation were referred for blood investigations, X-ray and sputum examination.
The outreach team comprised medical officers, community health staff and representatives from the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme. In addition to clinical services, the camp included health education sessions, covering cardiopulmonary resuscitation awareness with practical demonstration and tuberculosis awareness focusing on symptoms, diagnosis, treatment adherence and follow-up. Information on welfare-linked components such as Nikshay Poshan Yojana and Nikshay Mitra was also disseminated.
A total of 42 beneficiaries participated in the Borang outreach camp, with 31 patients examined. The interventions included initiation of treatment for newly detected hypertension cases and follow-up of patients with hypertension and diabetes. The medical team also undertook home visits for a bedridden elderly patient and a previously treated tuberculosis patient, extending care beyond the camp venue.
Earlier, on January 13, an outreach school health programme and medical camp was conducted at Haratikry. Schoolchildren were screened for height, weight, haemoglobin levels, dental and ear health, and eligible students received TD vaccination. The programme also included health education sessions on balanced nutrition, personal hygiene, handwashing practices, yoga and mindfulness.
As part of the school health component, the team inspected the quality and hygiene of the Mid-Day Meal programme, reinforcing the link between nutrition and learning outcomes.
Health officials indicated that these outreach activities form part of an ongoing strategy to strengthen preventive care, early detection and community awareness, particularly in remote and underserved areas of the islands.
