Ogun State governor’s wife, Bamidele Abiodun, has said government would ensure optimal healthcare for all citizens by revitalising service in all primary health facilities, to ensure quality service is delivered to the people, irrespective of their location.
Abiodun stated this during the launch of the 2019/2020 Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Week (MNCHW), at Odeda Primary Healthcare Centre in Odeda Local Government Area, Ogun State.
She said government would renovate and equip primary health facilities as well as employ qualified personnel to address the shortage of staff being experienced over the years.
The governor’s wife said the MNCHW campaign was to ensure children’s right to good healthcare, as well as improve the well-being of the family, especially pregnant women and children under five.
In her remarks, commissioner-designate, Ministry of Health, Tomi Coker, urged mothers and caregivers to avail their children and wards the opportunity of the various health interventions that had been specially designed to address maternal and child mortality, noting that it would go a long way at ensuring the state continued to improve in the National Demographic Health Survey.
Permanent secretary, Ministry of Health, Ayinde Adesanya, explained said the state would continue to ensure availability of vaccines and other health packages, adding that health personnel had been trained to improve on service delivery.
Executive secretary, Primary Healthcare Development Board, Elijah Ogunsola, said 0-59 months children would be reached, highlighting some of the health packages and services to include, vitamin A supplementation for children six-59 months; de-worming of children from 12 months to 59 months; screening under-five children for malnutrition.
He added that routine immunisation for eligible children 0-11 months and mothers; growth monitoring and promotion; HIV/AIDS counselling and services, as well as distribution of Long Lasting Insecticidal Treated Nets, to all under-five children and pregnant women, who register during the week.
According to Ogunsola, other interventions include antenatal care registration (including immunisation and IPT administration for pregnant women), promotion of key household practices such as hand-washing and basic hygiene, provision of family planning services to women and men of child-bearing age, while birth registration for children age 0-5 years, would be conducted by National Population Commission.
In their separate goodwill messages, the representative, World Health Organisation, Dr. Sunday Abidoye, the State Coordinator, National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr. Olatunde Odebiyi and the representative, United Nations Children’s Fund, Mrs. Florence Molokwu, while commending the Ogun State government in ensuring that the exercise was carried out, enjoined mothers and caregivers present to inform others in their various communities to bring their children and wards for vaccination, as the exercise would not be the usual house to house visitation by health workers.
Head of local government administration, Odeda, Local Government, Mrs. Bola Oshin, thanked the state government for various health programmes and interventions, which she said, had improved the overall wellbeing of the citizenry.
The week is scheduled to hold from Monday through Friday, January 17, 2020, across the 20 councils in the state.