100 Days In Office: Gov. Otu, Crystallising His 'People First' Vision In The Health Sector
By Kingsley Agim
Different strokes for different folks is a popular maxim, used variously to explain life's phenomena. Basically, the understanding of the saying, by the generality of people is that different methods could be applied to explain or solve problems and challenges facing society or people.
However elementary the application of the phrase 'different strokes for different folks' may seem, it's application to the development of the health sector could imply that every rung of healthcare development calls for different approaches or strategies.
Like education, healthcare also needs to be given importance. The above school of thought, Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State aligns completely with.
There are several levels of healthcare. The primary, secondary and tertiary. Each requires different things - amenities, or facilities, manpower and effective management for any significant progress to be made.
However, the needs of health sector are not only diverse in nature, but capital intensive. It is worthy of recognition that the present administration, ably led by Governor Bassey Otu, is desirous of putting in place a cost-effective, high-quality health care system, that guarantees health care to all of our people as a right. In his first 100 days in office, Otu has demonstrated avowed determination to improve the quality of healthcare services in the State through the exhibition of political will to provide funding for the smooth running of the sector, as well as provide manpower, relevant modern day facilities and infrastructure for effective service delivery for all.
In Cross River State, the decision of the Otu-led administration to bring healthcare under one roof is far from scoring a cheap political point, rather, it is borne out of patriotism and altruism to improve the standard of health sector of the State.
The rebirth of the health sector, no doubt, is in keeping to both his political promise and altruism for the wellbeing of the citizens.
Below are some of the strides made by the present administration's first 100 days in office in the health sector:
STATE MINISTRY OF HEALTH:
HUMAN RESOURCE FOR HEALTH:
(i) Employment of additional Doctors, Pharmacists, Science Lecturers, Nurse/Midwife/Public Health Lecturers to strengthen Health Facilities and Colleges of Nursing Sciences for accreditation and service delivery.
(ii) Hosting Accreditation/Resource Verification visits to 3 Colleges of Nursing by Joint Team from National Board for Technical Education/Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria.
(iii) Strengthening of Libraries and Laboratories with additional books and equipment in the Colleges of Nursing Sciences.
INCREASED ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE SERVICES:
• Oxygen Strengthening and Management; in collaboration with UNICEF, Cross River State Government has established solarized self-sustaining Oxygen Plant with an additional 150KVA Generator yet to be commissioned. The plant will produce Medical Oxygen for the entire healthcare delivery sector in Cross River State and environs.
• First enlarged statewide meeting of Government with all International Donor Agencies/Partners to assess, strengthen and expand access to healthcare using inter sectoral approach, initiated by Her Excellency, Rev (Mrs.) Eyoanwan Bassey Otu.
• Launching of Maternal and Newborn week in June with presentation of delivery kits and welfare items to pregnant women, mothers and children under 5years by Her Excellency, Rev (Mrs.) Eyoanwan Bassey Otu.
• Flag-off of Insecticide Treated Net Campaign at Calabar and all Local Government Area Headquaters in June followed by distribution of 2.8 billion Insecticide Treated Net to households in Cross River State. Decoration of the Net Ambassador for Cross River State in the person of Her Excellency, Rev (Mrs.) Eyoanwan Bassey Otu.
• Reactivation of Oral Cholera Vaccination in June/July aimed at control of Cholera epidemic in Cross River State.
• Outbreak response to measles in Akpabuyo and Obudu in July, 2023
BUILDING
• Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) field activities aimed at elimination of NTDs in Cross River State. In June. July and August.
• Last mile distribution of family planning commodities to 18 Local Government Areas in collaboration with UNFPA.
CAPACITY BUILDING:
(i) Training of Laboratory focal persons and Director, Medical Science on sample management for Epidemic Prone Disease (EIDs) by NEDA in collaboration with Cross River State Government.
(ii) Capacity building for medical laboratory staff on malaria microscopy in all secondary health facilities across the State aimed at improving malaria diagnosis.
(iii) Training and re-training of health professionals on quality of care, development of accountability framework, data quality assessment, monitoring and evaluation.
(iv) Capacity building of 23 family planning stakeholders from 18 Local Government Areas on reviewed Contraceptive Logistic Management System Tool (CLMST).
(v) On the job post-abortion care training for health professionals.
INFRASTRUCTURE:
• Renovation of the State Medical warehouse to grade ‘A’ standard by Cross River State Government in collaboration with AKESIS LTD for storage of medical commodities.
• Fistula center renovation and equipping by Cross River State Government in collaboration UNFPA ongoing.
• Renovation of TB Reference Laboratory, administrative block and provision of incinerator for management of medical waste in collaboration with development Partners at Dr. Lawrence Henshaw Memorial Hospital, Calabar .
• Provision of solar light to light up the hospital premises at night. - Phase 1 Completed
• Upgrade of broken hospital perimeter fence.
• General upgrade/renovation of Secondary Health Facilities.
STATE AGENCY FOR THE CONTROL OF AIDS (SACA)
• Commemoration of the International Youth Day in collaboration with the University of Calabar, CSOs, Youth Groups and Implementing partners
• Training of Adolescents and Young Persons on adolescent kit for innovation and expression
• Reactivation of Domestic Resource Mobilization Technical Working Group with support from Excellence Community Education Welfare Scheme (ECEWS)
• CRSACA participated in the NACA–SACA Forum held in Abuja.
• NACA – SACA Joint Performance Management Assessment of Health Facilities
• Conducted Harm Reduction Sites Assessment with support from the Federal Ministry of Health and Heartland Alliance LTD/GTE
• CRSACA participated in the NACA South-South Zonal Monitoring and Evaluation Review meeting held in Uyo.
• The Agency participated in the development of the Cross River State Health Sector 2023 Annual Operational.
STATE PRIMARY HEALTH CARE DEVELOPMENT AGENCY:
• The flag-off of Oral Cholera/ Polio Vaccines campaign and vaccination of residence in five wards of Obubra LGA
• Training of 500 Community Health Influencers Promoters and Services (CHIPS) programs and 100 Community Engagement Focal Persons (CEFPs) demand creation for health care services in PHC facilities.
• Drilling of boreholes for PHC Ogboga, PHC Ibil and PHC Ekumtak for availability of water supply
• Revitalization of 196 Ward Development Committees (WDCs) across the State as the fourth level of care.
• Supply of Hospital equipment, materials and commodities to five Primary Health Care Centres in Calabar South Local Government Area including PHC Anderson, PHC Nelson, Mandela, PHC Henshaw Town, PHC Moore Road and PHC Anantigha
• Amendment of Maternal and Child Health law for Cross River State (Law No. 6 of 2021) as supported and sponsored by UNFPA has been signed awaiting dissemination
• Successful execution of first period Maternal Newborn and Child Health week (MNCH).
• Execution and culmination of World Breast Feeding Week.
• Upgrade of two facilities in hard-to-reach areas of old Ndebeji and Akor in Akamkpa Local Government Area by Doctors without Borders as well as building of two staff quarters for the facilities
• With support from the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, five (5) Doctors, twenty (20) midwives and twenty (20) CHEWs were employed for State Primary Healthcare Agency on contract basis who have resumed work in the facilities.
• Connection of State Cold Chain Store to the National Grid
• Commissioning of two (2) health facilities at Assiga in Yakurr and Boki Local Government Areas.
• With Support from Marie Stope, all the 18 LGAs in the State were provided with commodities, trained and retrained Health Care Workers to conduct outreaches in hard-to-reach communities of the State
• With support from Society for Family Health (SFH), advocacies were conducted in 7 LGAs to advocate for uptake of family planning (DMPA-SC) self-injects as well as train mobilizers and sensitize community members to access FP services.
• Infrastructural development has also been recorded as in ground breaking of Staff Quarters for staff at PHC, Oban; handing over of completed Staff Quarters at Ekong Anaku for PHC Staff; Completed PHC facilities in Mbarakom in Akamkpa Local Government Area. And Nde and Etikpe in Ikom Local Government Area.
• Upgrade of 191 health facilities through Basic Healthcare Provision Fund by National Primary Health Care Development Agency
• A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) soon to be signed by the Permanent Secretary on behalf of the State Government from UNITED PURPOSE for the training of women on Tele-medicene at Obanliku LGA.
STATE HEALTH INSURANCE AGENCY
• Conducted enrolment of 24,874 enrollees from the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) Programme were enlisted into the programme, 10,946 enrollees from formal Sector (Civil Servants) and 16,470 Civil Servants registered into the sector.
• Conducted full accreditation of 54 PHCs and 27 Private Health Facilities as primary providers across the State.
• Provision of access to Care to 15,439 of the BHCPF beneficiaries and 7,403 of the Formal Sector beneficiaries
• Conducted validation exercise of beneficiaries of BHCPF ascertain the active population in the Scheme
• Setup Standard Quality Assurance unit in the Agency.
• Printed and distributed Service Utilization registers and revised data collection tools to all the PHCs under the BHCPF programme.
• Paid up-to-date capitation to all the PHCs under the BHCPF programme and all secondary health Facilities of the formal Sector.
• Conducted Monitoring & Supportive Supervision of Secondary health care facilities under the formal Sector.
• Face lift of the office including upgrading of the CRSHIA office reception, painting of CRSHIA office interiors, delineation and marking of CRSHIA Staff parking lots setting up official flags (CRSHIA, SMOH, Cross River &Nigeria) within the office premises, printing and mounting flex banners for CRSHIS (with Mission, VISION & MANDATE) as well as printing and mounting of flex for CRSHIS Benefit Package of Health Services
• Advocacy and sensitization for the informal sector activation.
• Held Stakeholders' meeting for the informal sector activation
• Held advocacy meeting with NULGE to join and release the premium for the formal sector
• Engagement meetings with Sterling bank, ICT Solution and RX Health on grey areas in Agreement for rectification and way forward with the consortium in the State Insurance Scheme.
• Commenced discussion with organized informal sector e.g. CRUTECH to join the CRS Health Insurance Scheme.
• Engaged with Health Institutions in the State including Colleges of Nursing and Midwifery, Health Technology and Education through letters to start the process of joining the State Health Insurance Scheme.
• Submit CRS Health Insurance Agency law and letter for establishment of the CRSHIA Board to the Office of the Secretary to the State Government.
• Successfully presented the CRS Health Insurance Agency to the Health Cluster.
RESILIENT AND SUSTAINABLE SYSTEMS FOR HEALTH (RSSH)
Resilient and Sustainable Systems for Health (RSSH) is a Global Fund support to the State through State Engagement Program through NACA as Principal Recipient (PR). The project is meant to strengthen the capacity of States to deliver integrated HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (ATM) services in Five selected LGAs namely: Odukpani, Abi, Boki, Yala and Obudu and to integrate private facilities as spokes into public health facilities as hubs in ATM service delivery.
The following were activities conducted by Cross River State RSSH. The activities were geared towards building the capacity of public health facility workers and private facilities providing HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (ATM) services in the five supported Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Odukpani, Abi, Yala, Boki and Obudu; build the capacity of Monitoring and Evaluation Officers (M&EOs) in public and private facilities on proper documentation and reporting of ATM services in the five supported LGAs as well as ensure update of the private and public facilities in NHMIS; establish and strengthen coordination platform for all Global Fund supported interventions in the state; ensure quality assurance in the laboratory and pharmaceutical activities, provide technical assistance, ensure institution of Drug Therapeutic Committee in the five Supported LGAs; and ensure adaptation and availability of Integrated Supportive Supervision tools for monitoring and mentorship visits in the State for ATM services
Activities conducted by Cross River State included:
• Training of Private and Public Health Facilities staff on the use of NHMIS tools
• Training of Private and Public Health Facilities staff on electronic data capturing to improve real time data reporting and decision making.
• Conduct One-Day meeting with LGA M&E Officers to Update DHIS2 Health Facility Registry in Cross River State
• Support quarterly State Level Coordination meeting with ATM Partners/Service Providers
• Conduct monthly quality assurance meetings and technical assistance visits for Commodity management, Drug Therapeutic Committee (DTC) and Lab quality at the private facilities
• Conduct 2-day workshop to adapt ISS checklists and conduct a capacity build for State supervisors on ISS and use of checklist
• Capacity building meeting with Project M&E Officers
• Capacity building meeting with Project Finance Officers
• Virtual Meeting with States to review status of implementation of RSSH as well as July Monthly review meeting
• Capacity gap analysis
• A 2-day Training on Global Fund (GF) Implementation Guidelines
• State speicfic Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Plan Validation meeting.
• The Wife of the Governor, Rev Mrs Eyoanwan Bassey Otu also recently flagged-off her free health outreach.
Conclusively, in Governor Bassey Otu's leadership, the health sector, under the able charge of Dr Henry Egbe Ayuk, promises total transformation to offer quality, affordable healthcare system for the betterment of the citizens of the State.
