THE UNPRECEDENTED ACHIEVEMENTS OF GEJ IN THE HEALTH SECTOR - ONYEKABA CHIOMA R.

The unprecedented attention given to matters concerning the wellbeing of Nigerians by President Goodluck Jonathan has repositioned the health sector, resulting in better healthcare and a record increase in life expectancy in the country. The health sector of our great Country has been given a priority place resulting in the formulation and implementation of strategic policies to strengthen the national health system for effective and affordable delivery of health services to Nigerians as contained in the manifesto of the PDP.

 

The last four years have witnessed an aggressive reorganization of the health ministry and its paratatals as well as rehabilitation and re-equipping of federal medical institutions including all teaching hospitals, transforming them from consulting clinics and reducing them to comprehensive secondary and referral life-saving institutions.

 

In 2010, President Goodluck Jonathan  launched the National Strategic Health Development Plan (2010-2015) which clearly spelt out government’s plans in that very important sector. Four years down the line, the project has been pursued with vigour and unquestionable commitment and the results are palpable.

 

Using the Saving One Million Lives Initiatives and National Health Insurance Scheme, it is incontrovertible that in the last four years of Jonathan Administratioon, Nigerians have more access to adequate and affordable health care, resulting in a record increase in life expectancy in the nation.Over a million lives have been saved directly under the Saving One Million Lives initiative by scaling up cost-effective interventions in maternal and child health care, nutrition, prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV, malaria control and eradication of polio.

Today, maternal mortality has dropped by more than 50 percent following the provision of Midwives Service Scheme and the attendant facilities in our hospitals. The Nigerian child now receives free diabetes treatment in all public hospitals across the country also.

Under the National Strategic Health Development Plan, new technologies in modern medical equipment are now available in most Federal medical institutions, positioning them to handle medical emergencies and disease control. Thus, cases such as kidney, heart and brain ailments as well as cancer are being effectively handled in Nigeria at present.

After about ten years, open-heart surgery has resumed in Nigerian hospitals. So far, more than 55 of such surgeries have been conducted in our hospitals in 2013 with University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu, University College Hospital, UCH, Ibadan among others as front runners.

 

Microsurgery of the brain is also now being conducted at Federal medical Centre, Umuahia while laparoscopic surgery for fibroid cases has since commenced at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe. Also full laparoscopic services has commenced at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Ile Ife.This is in addition to the establishment of Geriatric Units for the elderly in Federal Tertiary Hospitals while renal transplant is now handled in most teaching hospitals across the country.

Following the revival of investment in medical research which was neglected in the past, Nigeria has been able to record breakthrough in the management of sickle cell anemia with the University of Benin Teaching Hospital performing an infusion cell into sickle anemia patience in 2012.

The National Orthopedic Hospitals in Enugu, Kano and Lagos as well as Federal Medical Centre, Yenegoa among others are now performing Total knee and hip replacement thereby giving lifeline to accident victims in the country. Great successes have been recorded with record high number of VVF repairs at the National Obstetric Fistula Centers using state of the art equipment.

The repositioning of the sector under President Jonathan enabled the country to achieve the globally acknowledged feat on the control of Ebola Virus Disease, which has made our health system a model for other countries. In the same vein, the country recorded another health milestone with the eradication of polio. Following our aggressive drive, no new case of the disease has been recorded in the last six months and this qualifies Nigeria to be declared polio-free this month in line with global requirements.

As a way of strengthening the capacity of health workers towards job satisfaction and better service delivery, this administration in April 2014 launched the National Diploma in Paramedics Technology in addition to the registration and training of Medical Physicists in Nigeria.

Now, Nigeria has a Revised Curriculum for Undergraduate Medical and Dental Education as well as Curriculum on Herbal Medicine Development while a Committee on development of indigenous herbal products for promotion of exports has been established.

To take the sector to the next level, the present administration has already inaugurated a Ministerial Committee to unlock the private sector potentials and pave the way for the establishment of world class specialist hospitals and high-end diagnostic centres in each of the six geo- political zones of the country.

 

In line with the vision of the Jonathan administration to ensure that Nigerians have quicker access to specialized medical attention more of these have been done:

• 1500 primary healthcare facilities have been

refurbished and supplied with essential

drugs

 

• Establishment of the Nigeria Centre for

Disease Control (NDCD)transformation at a glance

Coverage increased from 38% in 2012 HEALTH

 

• Maternal mortality has dropped by more

than 50% in Midwives Service Scheme

(MSS) facilities from 2009 to 2012

 

• MOU has been signed with General Electric

(GE) for the establishment of private world

class specialist hospitals and diagnostic

centres under PPP arrangement

 

• Overseas component of the Residency

Training Programme to build the capacity

of health professionals with 60 doctors

benefiting

 

• Health insurance coverage increased from

6% in 2011 to 8% in 2013

 

• The National Immunisation to 82% in 2013

 

• Under-5 mortality is down to 94/1000 live

births from 157/1000 live births

 

• Maternal Mortality ratio has reduced from

545/100,000 in 2008 to 350/100,000 live

births in 2012transformation at a glance

 

• Guinea worm disease, which previously

affected over 800,000 lives yearly, has been

eradicated from Nigeria

 

• Introduction, for the first time in the

history of Nigeria, a curriculum for the

training of paramedics

 

• For the first time in the history of

the country, there has not been any

transmission of the Type-3 Wild Polio virus

for more than one year and the practice of harmful Female Genital Mutilation have been stopped.

All under the administration of GEJ. I believe that four more years will do us no harm.

 Let’s VOTE CONTINUITY AND TRANSFORMATION!