The Nation Newspaper

Tag: National Health Act

  • ‘Pneumonia killed 140,520 children under five in 2016’

    140, 520 children under five died of pneumonia in 2016, killing more than 16 children every hour, a report released by an international non-governmental organisation, Save the Children International, has said.
     
    The report, ‘Fighting for Breath in Nigeria: A call to action on childhood pneumonia,’ was unveiled by the Country Director of the organisation, Mr Ben Foot, in Abuja on Monday.
     
    The report said more than 4.2 million children aged 12-23 months were not immunized with Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) in 2016.
     
    It called on the Federal Government to ensure that at least one percent of consolidated revenue provided in the National Health Act is budgeted and released yearly to provide basic health care at the primary health level.
     
    The report reads: “The Federal Government should ensure that at least 1% of consolidated revenue provided in the National Health Act is budgeted and released yearly to provide basic health care at the primary health level, including for training, retraining of health workers and provision of essential drugs and equipment.
     
    “Government at all levels should reduce vulnerability to pneumonia by promoting healthy nutrition, exclusive breastfeeding, complimentary feeding, hand washing, safe drinking water and sanitation as well as prompt care seeking behaviour.
     
    “The federal government should encourage states to adopt and implement Task Shifting/Task Sharing policy as a step towards addressing human resources for health challenges at the primary health care level.”
     
    Mr. Foot, at the launch of the Pneumonia Global Report to mark this year’s World Pneumonia Day, said governments at all levels and stakeholders must come together to tackle the challenges posed by pneumonia.  
     
    He said the organisation has been working in Nigeria since 2001 to save children.
     
    Mr. Foot said: “We need to recognize now that pneumonia is something that we all need to come together- government, private sector, NGOs, civil society, to try and finally tackle.
     
    “This is something we can do something about. This is something that every day, new technologies, new ideas, new approaches are coming forward to enable us to save many more children.
     
    “It is a preventable disease. Many children can be saved. It is still a problem in sub-Sahara Africa.

    Read Also: NGOs seek action against Pneumonia

     
    “There is a growing movement to try and deal with the horror that we face every day with so many children dying of something that if we work together, could stop.”
     
    President of the National Medical Association (NMA), Faduiley Francis, said pneumonia is a silent killer and it places a huge burden of families and health system in Nigeria.

    He said Nigeria is one of the 15 countries responsible for 70 per cent of global deaths attributable to pneumonia and diarrhea among under five children.

    Mr Francis who was represented by Mustapha Yahaya called on the federal government to review the National Health Insurance Act and make health insurance mandatory for all states and citizens.

    This, he explained, was the surest way to achieve Universal Health Coverage by the country. 

    The Country Representative, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Paulin Basinga said pneumonia should be considered a number one problem in Nigeria.

    Represented by Yusuf Yusufari, Basinga said the organisation is committed to help children in Nigeria and will support in its fight against pneumonia.

    Basinga noted that the coverage of PCV in Nigeria was still very low and no progress could be made with that.

    She urge the federal government and other partners to ensure every child in Nigeria was immunised. 

    In his remarks, the Country Representative, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Mohammed Fall, said every day should be considered a world pneumonia day because the disease stands as a leading cause of death of children all over the world.

    Represented by Chief of Health, UNICEF, Sanjana Bhardwaj, Mr Fall said a combined effort from all partners will lead to zero pneumonia in Nigeria and even in the world. 

  • National Health Act and emergency treatment

    Emergency incidents and their associated challenges have been identified as one of the major causes of loss lives on a daily basis in Nigeria. Majority of Nigerian highways are without plans for emergency rescue operations either by state or non-state actors. Further, when such emergency evacuation succeeds through the help of individuals or the communities close to the scene of either accident or any other major emergency situation, the bureaucracy at the reception of most hospitals and health institutions may pose as obstacle to save lives. And when inexperienced personnel are on duty, lives may be lost due to the absence of skilled personnel.

    Again, it used to be the practice that persons with gunshot wounds are required to provide police report before the health care provider can attend to the victim. Failure to provide the report may lead to the victim bleeding to death or dying of other complications. But emergencies are times when every second and minute counts and the best of hands are required to attend to the patient in a life and death situation. Thus, the ability to be treated by qualified medical personnel within a short period of time may be the difference between living and dying.

    Section 20 (1) and (2) of the National Health Act (NHA) provides that “(1) A health care provider, health worker or health establishment shall not refuse a person emergency medical treatment for any reason. (2) A person who contravenes this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of N100, 000.00 or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding six months or to both.”

    By prohibiting the refusal of emergency care and penalizing the refusal, the National Assembly underscores the seriousness which it attached to emergency treatment considering that it is about saving lives through taking steps to fulfill the right to life.  Again, in providing for the Basic Health Care Provision Fund, the National Health Act dedicated five per cent of the fund to emergency medical treatment to be administered by a committee appointed by the National Council on Health. Beyond outlawing the action and penalizing same, the legislature has provided for funds to be used in setting up the framework for emergency treatment. This is a beautiful provision that needs to be activated by the National Council on Health and the Minister of Health.

    In many cases, emergency patients die due to neglect; lack of money to pay a deposit as demanded by health institutions from the relations or concerned individuals who intervened to rescue such patients. Most healthcare providers in Nigeria insist that relations of such victims of emergency must purchase the institution’s card. Some may demand initial deposit of a large amount of money before such patient is admitted for treatment. In many cases, these category of patients die in such situations because of waste of time in trying to meet monetary demands which differs from one health institution to another.

    The emergency department (ED) represents a portal of entry into a hospital for the acute care of patients without prior appointment either by their own means or an ambulance. The hallmark of emergency care is that it is time constrained critical care requiring prompt diagnosis and interventions to prevent avoidable deaths and disability. This challenges the practice in our institutions where a combination of factors militates against timely and prompt services. Deep knowledge and skills may be required in emergency life and death situations. Thus, the best of trained personnel may be required to attend to emergency situations.

    Considering that the 2018 budget has provided for the Basic Health Care Provision Fund and regulations for its use has been drawn up, it is therefore imperative that implementation commences without further delay. This should be supported by massive sensitization so that Nigerians would know exactly the services that are available and how to use them. The implementation framework should deal with critical facts – where private health service providers are the ones who save lives through emergency treatment, how will such private service provider be reimbursed? Further, the design of our roads and highways should take cognizance of the need or emergency care, ambulance services and facilities to ensure that lives are saved when road accidents occur.

    Section 30 of the National Health Act made provision for complaints by affected individuals who suffer undue treatment in the hands of healthcare providers. Thus: “(1) A person may lay a complaint about the manner in which he or she was treated at a health establishment and have the complaint investigated. (2) The Minister, Commissioner or any other appropriate authority shall establish a procedure for the laying of complaints within the areas of national health system for which the Federal or State Ministry is responsible.” The relationship of this provision to emergency health care is that this provision can enable relatives and others who move emergency patients to hospitals to file complaints if lives are lost or undue harm results from the tardiness of health institutions and practitioners.

    In conclusion, the provisions for emergency care under the National Health Act should not be left as dry letters on parchment in the statute books and shelves. It should be fully, meticulously and rigorously implemented. It is part of the fulfillment of the state obligation to respect, protect and fulfill the right to life.

     

    • Okere Esq. writes from Centre for Social Justice, Abuja.
  • 2018: Senate vows to implement 2014 National Health Act

    2018: Senate vows to implement 2014 National Health Act

    The senate has vowed to implement the 2014 National Health Act, especially the one percent of the consolidation fund.

    The Act stipulates that one percent of the consolidation fund be set aside for health.

    However, this was not included in the proposed 2018 budget recently submitted by President Muhammadu Buhari to the senate for consideration and approval.

     

    Details later…

  • Edo to domesticate National Health Act

    Edo to domesticate National Health Act

    Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo says his administration will domesticate the National Health Act in order to boost health care delivery in the state.

    Obaseki spoke on Monday night in Benin, after a two-day workshop organised by the state government with the theme: `Remodeling Health Care Delivery in Edo State: New Vision, New Horizon.’

    Dr Osagie Ehanire, the Minister of State for Health, chaired the workshop.

    The governor said that the state house of assembly should be able to examine the provisions of the Act and got it domesticated within 90 days.

    The governor also disclosed that a health master plan would be finalised for the state based on the recommendations of the workshop.

    He said a team would be drawn from the participants at the workshop to help formulate the health master for the state.

    Obaseki stressed the commitment of his administration to remodel the state’s health sector.

    ’’We must begin to see our health system as an ecosystem where resources can easily flow between the public and private health sectors.

    ‘’We are ready to have consultations on how to collaborate private providers into our state’s health plan.

    “I am prepared to open up the reconstructed Central Hospital and give it to whoever will be able to manage the facility”, he said

    The governor also called on health practitioners to explore the potentials of traditional medicine as a way of complementing conventional medicine.

    In his remarks, Ehanire said providing affordable basic primary health care was necessary in order to reduce preventable deaths in the state.

    He also stressed the need to make health care services more affordable, especially at the rural communities, and appealed to the state to implement a health insurance scheme.

  • FG to implement National Health Act – Buhari

    FG to implement National Health Act – Buhari

    President Muhammadu Buhari has said his administration was in the process of implementing the National Health Act, 2014, especially in the area of the basic health care provision.

    This has been an issue in the last two years as the government failed to allocate the one per cent consolidated fund in the budget as required by the Act, thereby raising concerns among stakeholders about government’s commitment to implementing the Act.

    President Buhari noted that his administration is fully prepared to change the trend where majority of the people don’t have access to basic health care services in the country.

    The President, who spoke at the flag off of the Primary Health Care Revitalization programme and commissioning of the Kuchigoro Primary Healthcare Centre as Model Health Care centre, said the vision of the government was to revitalize 10,000 primary healthcare facilities in the country.

    He stressed that his administration will continue to ensure that greater number of Nigerians have access to quality health care services.

    He said: “I want to assure Nigerians that government will continue to ensure that Nigerians have access to quality basic health care services. Accordingly, the provision in the National Health Act, 2014 for the Basic Health Care Provision Fund is in the process of being implemented. I also assure my fellow countrymen and women that our administration will fulfill all the promises made to the people.

    “The provision of quality health care service will reverse the poor health indices in the country. I am hopeful that our women will no more be dying needlessly during childbirth; our children will no more be dying needlessly as a result of vaccine preventable diseases or common ailment; access to health care will not be limited because of lack of money to pay.”

    He described the revitalization programme as part of the government’s commitment to put health as a top priority in the country.

     

  • Senate frowns at high rate of medical negligence

    The Senate Thursday decried the high rate of medical negligence and non-compliance with the National Health Act in the country.

    The upper chamber of the National Assembly said it would hold a stakeholders’ forum tagged ‘First Nigerian Medical Law Summit” to tackle the problem.

    The Chairman, Senate Committee on Health, Senator Olanrewaju Tejuoso, told reporters the forum was necessitated by the increasing petitions against medical institutions and personnel.

    He said, “The Nigerian Medical Law Summit is a one-day retreat organised for chief medical directors of public and private hospitals and heads of professional health associations.

    “The ‘medicolegal’ retreat is crucial as a result of the constant increase in allegations of medical malpractice and medical negligence claims from public and private hospitals all over Nigeria.

    “The summit is necessary due to the high level of non-compliance with the National Health Act by Nigerian health facilities and professionals.

    “The summit is aimed at positioning the leadership of the Nigerian health system on how to prevent medical malpractice claims and legal liabilities.”

  • Fed Govt urged to implement 2014 National Health Act

    THE Society of Gynecology and Obstetrics of Nigeria (SOGON) has urged the Federal Government to implement the National Health Act of 2014.

    It said the implementation would ensure universal health coverage for the citizens.

    SOGON’s plea was contained in a communique issued after its 50th annual general meeting held in Akure, the Ondo State capital and signed by its President, Prof. Brian-D Adinma and Secretary General Dr. Chris Agboghoroma.

    It requested the government to give free antenatal care and delivery for every mother.

    SOGON advised the government to encourage family planning to give room for maternal mortality reduction and human growth.

    It requested that the federal, states and local government, non-governmental organisations and civil society groups to put in place necessary machinery to ensure the access of the citizenry to free and informed family planning services.

    This, it said, would enable the achievement of government’s commitment to the attainment of Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR) currently at 14 per cent to 36 per cent by 2018.

    The communique also reads: “There is dire need of greater political will on the part of government in the formulation and implementation of policies to enhance maternal and newborn health.

    “SOGON, having commenced the Volunteer Obstetrician Scheme (VOS), will ensure sustained commitment to its implementation nationwide as part of its contribution to improving maternal health.”

     

    “The government should ensure every graduating medical officer is placed in the housemanship programme without much delay

    “The conference condemns the practice of gender-based violence and the medicalisation of the practice of FGM and called on government and its members to help in eliminating these practices at every level.”