Reps Committee Calls For partnership to improve specialised healthcare delivery

The House of Representatives Committee on Specialty Healthcare has called for partnerships in the implementation of Legislative Activity Implementation Framework on specialised healthcare delivery in the country.

 

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The Chairman of the committee, Mr. Alex Egbona, made the call at a stakeholders roundtable in Abuja.

He said that the thematic areas of partnership include Mental/Brain Health, Trauma and Obstetrics Fistula

He said other areas are, Oral Health, Ear and Eye Healthcare, Blood Transfusion, Blood Management and Anemia.

The lawmaker said that Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine as well as Specialty Healthcare Innovation are also part of the thematic areas.

“In the course of our legislative duties and committee activities, we discovered some cross cutting challenges faced by all specialised healthcare providers and institutions in Nigeria.

“They include infrastructural decay, lack of requisite medical equipment, poor electric power source/ supply and poor / inadequate funding.

“The committee sadly notes that the specialised hospitals and healthcare centres serving the nation as referral hospitals on specialised health emergencies are the lowest funded in the health sector budgets.

“The Committee therefore invited you all here today as professionals and experts to review the Draft Legislative Activity Implementation Framework, make your observations, contributions, interventions and inputs on the document,” he said.

He said that the expected outcome include improved legal and legislative framework for robust legal environment that enables the deployment of secure and efficient e-Health systems.

The chairman also said that enhanced digital healthcare
access, increased adoption of digital health technologies to improve patient outcomes and access to care was expected.

“It seeks Improved Mental/brain Health Services for better allocation of resources to underserved areas and addressing gaps in service delivery.

“It also seeks increased awareness and reduced stigma for greater societal understanding of mental/brain health, leading to reduced stigma and better utilisation of mental/brain health,” he said.

In his remarks, the Country Programme Manager of Christian Blind Mission (CBM), Mr Michael Idah, said that proper attention should be given to the aged and Persons With Disability (PWD)

He explained that the aged and PWD are often secluded in the scheme of things especially access to medicare.

The programme manager urged stakeholders to take sustainability of the framework into consideration saying that it would prevent returning to the drawing board.

Also speaking, the Executive Director, Justice, Development, Peace Commission (JDPC) Rev. Fr. Sebastian Sani, said that the commission was happy to be party to the initiative.

He said that the church carries a mandate of looking at after people with special needs especially the poor in the society.

“Currently, we have up to 100s of people with disability that as a church, we are paying for their health insurance.

“This gathering and meeting with stakeholders, will further encourage us to do more,” he said.

Sani called for the establishment of Specialty Healthcare Trust Fund that cooperate and private individuals will contribute to in support the sub sector.

The Deputy Chatman, FCT Association of Integrative Medicine Practitioners, Dr Jackie Ikeotuonye called for a regulatory council.

She said that regulation of alternative medicine especially traditionalist who inherit some form of skills from their mentors or parents was imperative.

Dr. Ikeotuonye said that there is need to regulate and determine dosage as people are made to drink all sort of concentrated mixtures.

“You see the way the world is moving now, there is need to put some regulations, especially like where a traditionalist is telling you go and pluck some leaves.

“What leave? What Quantity? Who is directing who? Of course, there is been a lot of abuse in that sector, people drinking all manner of our war with different things, killing their kidneys and all that.

“So this is timely, and we strongly believe that part of the outcome of this, what the committee is doing is to ensure that there is a council, which I we are told, is already on the President’s table, waiting for assets,” he said.

The committee gave stakeholders 10 days to further peruse the legislative activity implementation framework and submit memoranda for implementation.