AfriPulse
Governor Alex Otti
The Governor of Abia State, Dr Alex Otti has warned that the government plans to arrest anyone patronizing traditional birth attendants, citing Nigeria’s contribution to 29 per cent of maternal mortality worldwide.
Speaking on Saturday during the commissioning of two primary health centers in Bende local government, the Governor, resented by the commissioner for health, Prof. Enoch Ogbonnaya said that traditional birth attendants lack the requisite skills for safety in the handling of maternal and child health care services.
“One of the major causes of maternal mortality is delivery by unskilled workers. And that includes traditional birth attendants who have not been trained and certified to provide that level of healthcare service, They therefore do not have the requisite skills for safety in the handling of maternal and child health care services,” he stated.
He emphasized that the two functionalized primary health centers bring the total to 42, and said that the remaining eight PHCs are expected to be completed within the next week.
“The remaining 8 PHCs will be done in the next one week to complete the 50 PHCs billed to be functionalized this September, in the first phase of the functionalization programme of the ‘Project Ekwueme,” he said.
The renovated PHCs are equipped with modern facilities, including multiple multi-parameter monitors and state-of-the-art delivery rooms with first-rate delivery beds and life-support equipment.
“In these PHCs, you will see multiple multi-parameter monitors that provide state-of-the-art monitoring of the health indices. We have the automatic external defibrillator, which is a machine that you can use to shock the heart when there is cardiac arrest,” he added.
Governor Otti emphasized that his government is committed to providing world-class healthcare infrastructure,
“You have auto-analysers, incubators in the laboratory, oxygen cylinders and oxygen delivery devices, including state-of-the-art delivery rooms equipped with first-rate delivery beds and life-support equipment, for both the mother and the child,” he said.
Stakeholders commended Governor Otti’s commitment to healthcare transformation. The Mayor of Bende LGA, Deacon Uwabunkeonye Bassey, noted, “Governor Alex Otti has really shown that he is on a mission to change the ugly situation the facilities have faced over decades.”
The Executive Secretary of the Abia State Primary Healthcare Development Agency and the Executive Secretary of the Abia State Health Insurance Agency urged the people to own the project and take advantage of the Abia State Basic Health fund.
Source: TheWhistler | Read the Full Story…
