Anambra State governor, Chief Willie Obiano, has directed immediate revamping and equipment of 30 general hospitals in the state with facilities to make them more effective.
The directive was given at the flag-off of the May 2014 Maternal, New born and Child Health Week, MNCHW, for children aged six to 59 months at Nibo, Awka South Local Government Area.Giving the directive to the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Josephat Akabuike, weekend, the governor said the aim was to ensure that they provided medicare comparable to the levels currently available in mission hospitals across the state.
Governor Obiano pledged to ensure the extension of health services to all nooks and crannies of Anambra State to reach the poor, vulnerable and down-trodden in furtherance of the administration’s policy thrust on health.
Obiano said: “My administration has shown commitment and the greatest support for primary health care and disease control.
“We have instituted preventive and control measures against the outbreak of diseases like Lassa fever, Cerebral Meningitis, cholera, diarrhea, among others.
“Support for immunisation will be sustained, and we will ensure that the gains made in the area of public health and immunisation will be sustained and surpassed. Already 15 per cent of the general hospitals are provided with free and safe pre-natal and post-natal services.”
Governor Obiano observed that the interventions had over the past six years, reached over one million children and 300,000 pregnant women, with antigens and intervention.
Also various pluses, sops, albendazoles tablets iron foliate tablets, biscuits, cups, bowls, were given to children and mothers as motivation; over 60,000 tablets of soaps, 500,000 tablets of albendazol, 500,0000 tablets of iron foliate and 100,0000 packets of biscuits were distributed during each programme.
He confirmed that the state government had participated in all national programmes, including advocacy campaigns in the last six years, including immunisation plus days, integrated measles campaigns, state immunisation plus days, local immunisation plus days, maternal new born and child health weeks, as well as Governor’s Forum One day quarterly Polio Eradication Campaign.
Expressing gratitude to the government’s partners, including UNICEF, World Bank, World Health Organisation, National Primary Health Care Development Agency, media and other line ministries, the governor said the use of MNCHW as a periodic preventive routine outreach mechanism, had shown internationally to improve immunisation coverage and other services.
Earlier, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Josephat Akabuike, said Governor Obiano’s intervention in the area of health was working, stressing that the state was moving towards the direction of medical tourism to attract visitors on health ground and boost the state’s economy, given the prevailing sanity and adequate conducive security situation.
The Maternal and New Born Health Week is a programme aimed at addressing an integrated package of promotion and preventive services that is highly cost effective and result oriented. A highlight of the event was the immunization of children in turn by the governor and his wife at the venue.
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