Effort at changing perception of Northerners towards immunisation
By Azoma Chikwe
The initial focus of the Muhammadu Buhari administration in the health sector is maintenance of existing infrastructure, projects and completion of ongoing ones. Towards this end, the government aimed at infrastructure upgrade, with the view to having ensuring sound healthcare delivery system. However, this has been expanded to include the establishment of new facilities that would meet international standard, and by so doing reduce health tourism to other countries.
Indeed, if there is any health programme the President Buhari government has made giant stride in, it is in the area of polio fight and immunisation.
Not up to a month after assuming office, President Buhari publicly immunised his granddaughter. This gave a very big boost to immunisation programme, as it helped to get families, particularly in the northern part of the country, which hitherto refused to participate in the programme, to key in. Buhari’s pictures at the immunisation campaign flag-off was used to convince families to bring their babies for immunisation. UNICEF made a badge and put the picture of the president, immunising his granddaughter and displayed that where its officials visited. Such strategy was a door opener. It did send signals that the government was taking immunisation seriously.
The second thing Buhari did was to expand the Presidential Task Force on Immunisation to include state governors, instead of just relevant ministers (health and women affairs), traditional rulers, Rotary Club, UNICEF and WHO representatives. He brought in governors to ensure that what was done at the federal level also translates at the states. He also advised that governors set up task forces, which would include local government chairmen. This gave the programme a major boost because, hitherto, there was apathy by states and local governments, who did not give much moral support or provided counterpart funding, as required. They leave the Federal Government and partners to finance the project. Therefore, by getting the governors involved, Buhari got them committed and the problem solved.
So far, the Federal Government has made a commitment of $90 million, as against last year’s $50 million, in the budget to support polio eradication, This fund will be matched by some of partners, including Bill Gates Foundation, Rotary and others. The government has also promised security for vaccinators in the North East where the fight against insurgents is on.
Public Private Partnership
The Federal Government is looking at partnership with the private sector to run tertiary health institutions, as most of them are doing the job of primary healthcare centres and secondary health institutions. The plan is to make teaching hospitals and research institutions centre of excellence that will tackle heart diseases, cancer, stroke and the like. This will reduce capital flight lost to medical tourism.
Lassa fever
Nigeria experienced Lassa fever outbreak in the past few months in Bauchi, Edo, Gombe, Kano, Nasarawa, Niger, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Taraba and Lagos. The first case was reported from Bauchi State in November, 2015. The total number of cases reported by the Federal Ministry of Health was much, with a Case Fatality Rate of 46.5 per cent. A total of 101 deaths were recorded, out of 175 people affected.
Interventions by the Ministry of Health include airing of jingles on Lassa fever on electronic media, distribution of fact sheets on Lassa fever to the medical directors, health officers in all the LGAs and all other agencies of the ministry for circulation to Nigerians. there was also reactivation of isolation wards in teaching hospitals for isolation of any suspected case.
The Disease Surveillance and Notification Officers (DSNOs) in all the LGAs in the state were sensitised on Lassa fever to enhance early detection and prompt reporting of cases. Collaboration of Federal Ministry of Health with state ministries of health, virology reference laboratory, teaching hospitals and other tertiary health institutions and the WHO was highlighted. The Federal Government did earmark the sum of N140 million to tackle the disease.