Victor Okeke who was in Ogun, writes on interventions being undertaken to boost maternal health in the state
The significance of efficient healthcare delivery system to the general wellbeing of a nation is enormous. This accounts for why governments, the world over, commit huge funds to the health sector. A healthy nation they say, is a wealthy nation.
According to global statistics, the most vulnerable group of the population, especially in African countries, are women and children.
Their health demand special attention and emphasis is always on the maternal and child health through provision of services at primary health care centres across the country.
The maternal mortality and child death rate remains a major area of concern even at the international arena, as ways to tackle the menace, have become challenging.
It is worrisome and disheartening considering the number of women dying as a result of pregnancy – related complications such as malaria, anaemia, haemorrhage, hypertension, obstructed labour, unsafe abortion, sepsis, among others.
The Nigeria Demographic Health Survey shows that the material mortality rate has dropped from 800/100,000 to 545/100,000 while the under-five mortality rate declined from 201 to 157 deaths per 1,000 live births – based on some high – profile initiative comprising high impact intervention packages.
Such initiative include the Midwives service scheme and the launch of Maternal, Newborn and child, health week (MNCHW) in 2009 which is an integrated health care package to improve access to good quality health services of mothers, newborns and children less than 5 years of age in Nigeria.
The programme is a simple one time delivery mechanism that consolidates services that immediately demonstrates impact in terms of significantly increasing courage levels of all core preventive and curative interventions which include: vitamin A supplementation, Routine Immunization, Screening for Malnutrition in children, Birth Registration, Distribution of Long Lasting Insecticide Net (LLIN) to pregnant women, distribution of family planning commodities, Health Education on key household practice among other at no cost.
In Ogun State, the programme is tagged: “Araya (Wellness), a Community Health Insurance Scheme,” and “Gbomoro “ (uplift the child).
At the inaugauration of the programme, the state governor Senator Ibikunle Amosun ,said the project was geared towards ensuring that the people enjoyed affordable, sustainable and efficient healthcare.
“The wide spread participation in CBHIS across Ogun will provide free healthcare for vulnerable groups like pregnat women and children.”
“The main objective of Gbomoro is to increase the access of low income pregnant women to basic healthcare,” Amosun said.
Explaining the scheme, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Olaokun Soyinka, said treatment would be provided upon presentation of identity cards by the contributor.
“Upon registration, a contributor is issued an identity card with a personal identification number and upon payment, a user account is activated and an enrollee is able to gain access,’’ he said.
He said the premium was N7,000 annually with N3,000 as government contribution and N4,000 as enrollee contribution.
According to Soyinka, the vulnerable groups, which included pregnant women, children under five and the aged from 60 above, will access the scheme free.
At the launch, Ms Ratidzai Ndhlovu, the Country Representative of the United Nations Population Fund, commended the state government for the initiative.
Soyinka revealed that the intervention has reduced maternal mortality rate from 295/100,000 to 245/100,000 per live births while the state has surpassed the National Target of 78 per cent on Routine Immunization with zero status of Wild Polio Virus.
However, pregnant women in the state expressed mixed feeling regarding accessing maternal heathcare.
Mrs Joke Adesanya, a pregnant woman said though the state government claims antenatal care is free, health officers still make them pay.
“I gave birth to my first child in 2012. I paid 6,000 as discharge fees. I was not given receipt. My husband even wanted to fight them. The nurses said all materials used for my delivery were sourced by the centre as government stock had been exhausted.”
Other pregnant women who spoke with LEADERSHIP complained about the same issue of payment contrary to official claim of free maternal healthcare.
However, a highly placed personnel in the ministry of Health who craved anonymity, said there was no way maternal care would not attract charges.
“Truth be told, there is nowhere in the world where maternal care is totally free.
What the government has done is to reduce the payment so that pregnancy would not be a burden.”
“Also in our health centres, many services are free. Nobody pays for immunisation for instance. We also give free insecticide treated mosquito nets.”
http://leadership.ng/news/399842/challenges-maternal-child-health-ogun
The significance of efficient healthcare delivery system to the general wellbeing of a nation is enormous. This accounts for why governments, the world over, commit huge funds to the health sector. A healthy nation they say, is a wealthy nation.
According to global statistics, the most vulnerable group of the population, especially in African countries, are women and children.
Their health demand special attention and emphasis is always on the maternal and child health through provision of services at primary health care centres across the country.
The maternal mortality and child death rate remains a major area of concern even at the international arena, as ways to tackle the menace, have become challenging.
It is worrisome and disheartening considering the number of women dying as a result of pregnancy – related complications such as malaria, anaemia, haemorrhage, hypertension, obstructed labour, unsafe abortion, sepsis, among others.
The Nigeria Demographic Health Survey shows that the material mortality rate has dropped from 800/100,000 to 545/100,000 while the under-five mortality rate declined from 201 to 157 deaths per 1,000 live births – based on some high – profile initiative comprising high impact intervention packages.
Such initiative include the Midwives service scheme and the launch of Maternal, Newborn and child, health week (MNCHW) in 2009 which is an integrated health care package to improve access to good quality health services of mothers, newborns and children less than 5 years of age in Nigeria.
The programme is a simple one time delivery mechanism that consolidates services that immediately demonstrates impact in terms of significantly increasing courage levels of all core preventive and curative interventions which include: vitamin A supplementation, Routine Immunization, Screening for Malnutrition in children, Birth Registration, Distribution of Long Lasting Insecticide Net (LLIN) to pregnant women, distribution of family planning commodities, Health Education on key household practice among other at no cost.
In Ogun State, the programme is tagged: “Araya (Wellness), a Community Health Insurance Scheme,” and “Gbomoro “ (uplift the child).
At the inaugauration of the programme, the state governor Senator Ibikunle Amosun ,said the project was geared towards ensuring that the people enjoyed affordable, sustainable and efficient healthcare.
“The wide spread participation in CBHIS across Ogun will provide free healthcare for vulnerable groups like pregnat women and children.”
“The main objective of Gbomoro is to increase the access of low income pregnant women to basic healthcare,” Amosun said.
Explaining the scheme, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Olaokun Soyinka, said treatment would be provided upon presentation of identity cards by the contributor.
“Upon registration, a contributor is issued an identity card with a personal identification number and upon payment, a user account is activated and an enrollee is able to gain access,’’ he said.
He said the premium was N7,000 annually with N3,000 as government contribution and N4,000 as enrollee contribution.
According to Soyinka, the vulnerable groups, which included pregnant women, children under five and the aged from 60 above, will access the scheme free.
At the launch, Ms Ratidzai Ndhlovu, the Country Representative of the United Nations Population Fund, commended the state government for the initiative.
Soyinka revealed that the intervention has reduced maternal mortality rate from 295/100,000 to 245/100,000 per live births while the state has surpassed the National Target of 78 per cent on Routine Immunization with zero status of Wild Polio Virus.
However, pregnant women in the state expressed mixed feeling regarding accessing maternal heathcare.
Mrs Joke Adesanya, a pregnant woman said though the state government claims antenatal care is free, health officers still make them pay.
“I gave birth to my first child in 2012. I paid 6,000 as discharge fees. I was not given receipt. My husband even wanted to fight them. The nurses said all materials used for my delivery were sourced by the centre as government stock had been exhausted.”
Other pregnant women who spoke with LEADERSHIP complained about the same issue of payment contrary to official claim of free maternal healthcare.
However, a highly placed personnel in the ministry of Health who craved anonymity, said there was no way maternal care would not attract charges.
“Truth be told, there is nowhere in the world where maternal care is totally free.
What the government has done is to reduce the payment so that pregnancy would not be a burden.”
“Also in our health centres, many services are free. Nobody pays for immunisation for instance. We also give free insecticide treated mosquito nets.”
http://leadership.ng/news/399842/challenges-maternal-child-health-ogun
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