FG committed to revitalizing primary healthcare – Prof. Adewole
The Federal Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole says, the Federal government remains committed to revitalizing primary healthcare system as well as fighting tuberculosis in the country.
In his keynote address during the 59th National Council of Health Meeting held in Umuahia, the minister said this has reduced child and maternal mortality in the country, while Nigeria has remained polio-free in many states, though the country has discovered polio in few areas that the people have no access to proper health care.
The Minister thanked the President of the country for directing the release of 100% allocation to polio eradication programme, stating that their strategy is to ensure Nigeria is totally declared polio-free in 2017.
He assured that the country will continue with the immunization programme this 2017.
Professor Adewole disclosed that as part of efforts to implement an all-encompassing health strategy, the federal government has committed over $55.5 million (N17 billion) for the implementation of the Saving One Million Lives Initiative programme for Result (SOML-PforR) which he said has already commenced.
According to him, the fund was released to the 36 states and Abuja with each of them receiving $1.5 (N457.5 million) for the programme, stating that the money served as initial “pump to drive the delivery of the SOML indicators and enable states address legacy issues”.
He noted that though the SOML funds had been released, states were still facing difficulties in accessing it, assuring that the problems are being resolved as the present administration of Mohammadu Buhari will ensure probity, accountability and prudence in the use of the funds given to the states”.
He said that the federal ministry of health has trained states’ programme officers on the management of the programme, hence the federal ministry of finance finalization of arrangements to engage an independent verification agent for the programme in order to facilitate the disbursement of more funds to the states, “especially with the completion of health facility and multiple indicator cluster surveys”.
The National Strategic Health Development Plan, NSHDP II Prof Odewole said has been boosted with the inauguration of a technical working group, TWG stating: “The TWG is in the process of developing the NSHDP II framework as well as guidelines to be used by both the federal and states to develop their specific plans,” he said, adding that the specific plans would eventually be harmonized and the cost established from where the annual health budgets would be derived from.
The health minister declared that Nigeria would be “completely” declared polio free in 2017 as Mr. President has given the FMH “all the necessary support and encouragement to combat this challenge by directing that all our 2016 budgetary allocation of N9.8 billion for polio eradication effort be urgently be released”.
Contributing, Dr. Ehkanre Osagie, the Minister of State for Health described the theme of the summit “National health policy: A tool to Achieving Universal Health Coverage” as appropriate, stating that the
Federal Government desires to improve primary healthcare delivery in the country, hence the need for
designed and robust strategy to achieve that.
Federal Government desires to improve primary healthcare delivery in the country, hence the need for
designed and robust strategy to achieve that.
Declaring the event open, the Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu said Abia State has institutionalized critical emergency healthcare in the State, informing that the State has an agency, whose responsibility it is to respond to accident victims.
He disclosed that the agency; Abia State Passengers Integrated and Manifest Scheme, ASPIMSS has
well-equipped ambulance vehicles stationed in different centres and are always available to intervene in case of any emergency.
well-equipped ambulance vehicles stationed in different centres and are always available to intervene in case of any emergency.
According to the Governor, “In Abia State, unknown to what policy framework the Federal government has for health, we decided to, by way of strategy intervene at secondary health care level because we felt that whatever impact we could make on secondary health care would serve as a pull to support the primary healthcare centres”.
He revealed that already the State has about 800 healthcare centres located in the various wards of the State, adding that all that was needed was to create a secondary healthcare that are capable of supervising and supporting the activities of the primary healthcare centres.
Studies, he said shown that major issues in this regard include unavailability of services rendered at that level, hence the decision to attach secondary health centres to them as people always appreciate being attended to by Doctors and Consultants.
He maintained that as at today, it has worked as patients at primary healthcare now have access Doctors and consultants.
The Governor, who assured of continuous support in enhancing healthcare in the State, welcomed the health experts to the State and requested that Abia be taken as one of the two States to be used as pilot State for the planned Federal Government programme on health coming up soon.
