The Federal Government has expressed its desire to transform primary health care across the South-East region, just as it has raised eyebrows over the cold storage situation in primary health areas in Enugu State.
Dr. Mui Aina, Director-General of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHDA), said this over the weekend after inspecting the zonal cold storage, adding that there is an urgent need to repair the facility to provide optimal services. he emphasized. people’s interest.
Aina, who accompanied the agency’s top officials, expressed displeasure that some of the facilities were not functioning.
Also, during a visit to Governor Peter Mba at the Enugu State House, Mr. Aina commended the transformation of primary health care in Enugu State by Governor Peter Mba’s administration, noting that the state is well ahead in repositioning that tier of the health system. said.
“The people of Enugu are happy with you. The Federal Government is also happy with you for various reasons. When we came up, we said we want to revitalize primary health care centers across the country. I did.
“You’ve gone ahead of us. The news we’re getting is very encouraging and one of the reasons why this is our first stop. This is my first time visiting any state. .
“You went ahead of us and started building 260 new medical facilities. That’s no mean feat. You didn’t just talk about it, you actually completed some things. You have all signed on. It is truly an honor and a privilege to be here today given all these advances.
“Aside from what I just mentioned, you also focus on healthcare workers, which is another big thing. You know there’s a shortage. We’re recruiting health care workers in various cadres. We should be congratulated on this.
“We also recognize, and we would like to thank you, that you are the governors responsible for providing immediate funding when health operations and health campaigns require funding. “I never called anyone to beg them to release the offer,” he said.
Dr. Aina said in light of these advances, the FG intends to assist the state with N254m to support the revitalization of existing facilities to complement the new facilities being constructed by Governor Mbaha’s administration.
“I am encouraged by all these strides that you are making and I would also like to say that Enugu State will benefit from the continued revitalization of PHCs, where we have completed an assessment of 253 facilities. , From the results, there was a significant gap and we stepped up further.
“About 162 of them have the number of trained midwives they need to fully operate, and some may also need staff accommodation. We are here to support you. .
“A total of N254 million has already been allocated as part of the Basic Healthcare Delivery Fund which will be used to revitalize some of these facilities. We look forward to supporting your efforts. We have over 20 that we plan to revitalize for the state.”
He added that the authorities are ready to cooperate with the country in areas such as training human resources and replacing aging cold chain infrastructure.
While welcoming the support, Governor Mba noted that the government’s efforts to reposition the health system are in line with his administration’s priorities.
The governor said the government is recruiting 2,200 health workers to address the shortage in the health sector in the state.
“As you may have noticed, we are recruiting 450 health care workers, but only 2,200 are actually approved. Our analysis shows that we do not have access to health care workers at the time of birth. “The data on pregnant women was frightening. We knew we had to step up very quickly,” he said.
