A Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Hacey Health Initiative, has presented a multi-million naira worth of medical kit and tools to the Oyo State Government, through the state Primary Healthcare Board, to help pregnant women in the fight against malaria.
READ ALSO: Medical Mission: NGO targets over 40,000 patients in Anambra
The donation, which was made under the project named, “Impact Health Project”, according to Hacey, aims to reduce maternal mortality by improving the quality of real health service provision, improving health data collection and management system towards providing accurate evidence to inform policy formation and improving quality of service.
Hacey said the items are specifically to help reduce maternal mortality and morbidity by improving reproductive, maternal, neonatal and child health (RMNCH) service provision in tertiary, secondary and primary health institutions and local communities, by employing the use of digital and mobile health (mHealth) technology in the state.
The items donated include 30,000 doses of IPTp-SP (Intermittent preventive treatment of malaria in pregnancy using sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine) and 10,000 Malaria rapid diagnostic test (RDT) kits, to promote the prevention of malaria in pregnancy.
Others items include 275 android smartphones to the Oyo State Ministry of Health, for improving maternal health response, apart from the training of 370 health workers at primary healthcare centres across the state.
After a brief ceremony held at the Ibadan Business School, the Project Lead, Hacey Health Initiative, Kemi Omole, disclosed that the organisation has always been particular about increasing the life and livelihood of children and mothers and girls and women, saying anything that helps to improve maternal health outcomes is what the NGO ventures into.
Speaking on the choice of Oyo State for the donation, Omole stated: “We have had a long-standing relationship with Oyo State going back to about 13years, we have several projects that we have been implementing here and I think it also has to do with the kind of receptiveness we get here. The state government welcomes people and we don’t get that harsh treatment. At times you go to some states and the kind of reception you get is not good enough but Oyo state has been very receptive to us.”
The co-founder of Hacey Health Initiative, Mr Isaiah Owolabi, on his part, explained that the Impact Health Project is a health intervention of the Hacey Health Initiative, supported by its partners: Intellectual Property and Research Development (IPRD) Solutions and Argusoft.
Owolabi revealed that the Impact Health Platform comprises mobile and web enabled applications which aim to improve coverage and quality of healthcare delivery, supervision, support and motivation for providers, especially in hard to reach communities.
He stated: “Hacey Health Initiative’s Impact Health Project has supported in the collection of health information across 21 local governments in the state, covering over 60,000 households using the Family Health Survey mobile application. We have also trained 350 health workers and officials across 95 Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) in implementing LGAs on the use of the Quick ANC application for the administration and capturing of IPTp-SP and malaria rapid diagnostic tests.”
In his remarks, the Commissioner for Health, Dr Bode Oladipo, who was represented by Dr Oyewole Lawal, said the state is open to development partners in its bid to scale up the health of the residents.
Oladipo noted: “The support from development partners supplement what government is already doing. This government has open doors policy that foster partnership with any agency that can support the state. The state cannot do it alone, and we feel that, if we have such partnership, it will improve not only healthcare service delivery but education, agriculture and every other thing.”
Earlier, the Executive Secretary, Oyo State Primary Healthcare Board, Dr Muyideen Olatunji, expressed the appreciation of the state to the donor, saying the support has over the time helped to complement the efforts of the state government in improving healthcare service delivery to the people.
He assured that the state would make good use of the facility in a way that it would encourage more investment by supporting partners and donor agencies.
