By Tony Adibe
Health professionals in Enugu State have called on political party candidates for the March 11 Governorship and State Assembly elections to prioritise health issues. They said that prioritising health issues would deliver quality, accessible and affordable healthcare for all in the state notwithstanding location or economic status.
The health professionals said this during the Maiden Dialogue with Gubernatorial Front-Runners on Health Sector Agenda Setting and Consensus Building held in Enugu on Saturday. The Chairman, Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Enugu State, Dr Celestine Ugwoke, said that the purpose of the dialogue was to start early to impress it on would-be governor that the success of the health sector holds the success of other sectors.
Ugwoke, who articulated the views of other health professionals and associations, said that the dialogue was also a catch-them-young programme meant to focus the minds of candidates in building a virile and resilient health system to enhance productivity. He said: “We aim at having a robust interaction on ways to move the health sector of the state forward especially providing holistic healthcare to the benefit of rural dwellers and all residents in the state.
“In our interaction, the health professionals will know the political candidates blue-print on health; and get their buying-in into existing and running health system frameworks that needed to be strengthened for further positive results.”
The chairman noted that the dialogue would be continued through various means to ensure that the voices of health professionals are heard clearly and “sustainable and beneficial actions taken to put the health sector in proper footing in the state”.
Earlier, Prof. Benjamin Uzochukwu, a Professor of Health Management, Systems and Policy, noted that the health professionals and associations/unions remained a critical stakeholder in the good governance project of any government or state/country.
Uzochukwu, who is of the West Africa Medical and Dental Council, said that the in-coming governor must prioritise health and health programmes serving the generality of the people especially on health and well-being of the rural people. He maintained that vast population of the people of the state still lives in rural areas and as such an encompassing, holistic and sustainable healthcare would be sought for.
“There is a need to strengthen capacity and reach of the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in the state as well as make the Primary Healthcare Centres or facilities more functional to attend to the health needs and challenges of people in rural communities,” he said.
Among the four leading political candidates in the state invited for the dialogue, only the Labour Party Governorship Candidate, Dr Chijioke Edeoga, honoured the invitation on a representative capacity.
Edeoga, who was represented by Prof. Augustine Akubue, said that he would stop medical practitioner’s brain drain in the state by checkmating all push factors that cause it through adequate remuneration, training and retraining as well as allowance among others.
He said that his administration would increase budgetary allocation to health, increase inter-agencies collaborations as well as fashion out a robust Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) to increasing number of health facilities, equipments and technology in the state.
“We will also deal with issues of quackery in some health professions by ensure that all professionals are duly licensed to operate and all health facilities in the state duly registered and monitored to ensure standard.
“The Labour Party will ensure that all health facilities lying fallow in the state are put to beneficial use and provide technology to ensure proper and secured data capture in health facilities among others,” he said.
