FG Assures Nigerians Of Quality Healthcare Services

The Special Adviser to the President on Health, Dr. Salma Ibrahim-Annas says the present administration remains committed to ensuring that all Nigerians access quality healthcare services irrespective of gender and socio-economic status.

Dr Salma who made the call at a forum in Abuja said there would be stronger visibility in the funding of healthcare services especially using primary healthcare as a platform for the delivery of quality healthcare services for Nigerians.

She stated that plans were on the ground to further strengthen the nation’s healthcare facilities at all levels and build the capacity of healthcare workers to reverse medical tourism while leveraging on the opportunities and resources in the private sector.

In her words “Primary healthcare is a critical component of healthcare delivery and it is expected that the primary healthcare serves the majority of Nigerians, it is expected to provide the minimum package of healthcare at that level especially the teeming population of the vulnerable people mostly women, children, adolescents, the elderly and the disabled people, these are the most vulnerable people”.

“And where all Nigerians can easily walk in and have assessment of their blood pressure, and sugar level to identify early detection of health problems and also preventative and promotive measures will all be an integral and entry point within the primary healthcare. So functionality remains critical to us and when we talk about functionalities we are not only talking about the infrastructure, we are talking about water supply, electricity including the security of the primary healthcare facilities which will run twenty-four hours service in a day”.

In a remark, the Convener of the Forum and the Managing Director Options, Mr. James Harcourt called for more political will towards improving the nation’s health sector.

He explained that “In Nigeria specifically we measure our impact through several indices, one of them is around the available budget for health services. So in Nigeria, our organization has supported the health sector. The role Options played in Nigeria will be very impactful.”

On his part, the President Emeritus, Association for Reproductive and Family Health, Professor Oladapo Ladipo stressed the need for the government to intensify efforts in achieving universal health coverage.

According to Ladipo “Nigeria did not lack the necessary policies and adequate manpower but the enabling environment for effective implementation of such policies to work, therefore there is a need for government to intensify efforts to improve, as this remains key to achieving the universal health coverage”.

He said, “The need to improve healthcare services through training and adequate equipment as well as consumables to manage patients will go a long way to address challenges in the sector”.

Florence Adewale, Edited By Grace Namij