Poorly managed, inadequate PHCs contributing to maternal, child deaths – Tinubu’s aide, Salma

The persistent maternal health crisis in Nigeria has been attributed to the deficiencies in the Primary Healthcare System, which leaves the country in the list of 3 per cent of the world’s population contributing to the global burden of maternal and newborn deaths.

Experts say inadequate financing of the health sector, lack of medical expertise at PHCs, healthcare coverage gaps, poorly managed and equipped primary healthcare centres and low health coverage are some of the issues fuelling the crisis in the sector

Speaking at a seminar for health journalists on the theme: “Improving access to healthcare: The role of primary healthcare”, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Health, Dr Salma Anas Ibrahim noted that the problem of maternal and child death could be averted if PHCs were redesigned to function more effectively.

She noted that an effective primary healthcare system would boost the foundation of healthcare provision across the country and contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals target of universal health coverage by 2030 because it is closest to the people who require care the most.

“The PHC is the fulcrum for a resilient health system and should be structured to deliver services that will support the attainment of UHC and guarantee health security,” she said.

Describing the PHC as the entry point into the healthcare delivery system in any society, Salma noted that about 80 per cent of health issues ought to be sorted out at this level and life-saving basic care provided for the people.

In her words, ”As a gateway to accessing health services, it should be designed to fit the purpose for proper functioning and operations to be prepared for the needs of the community where it is located.

”It should be a hub of positive interaction that gives hope and relieves anxieties and distress to whoever visits there, whether as a caregiver or client/patient. It should be community-owned and led for optimal utilisation and sustainability of the PHC system along with the aspirations and potentials of the people and their developmental growth needs.

”The PHC should be linked to a secondary care facility for ease of referrals of cases requiring more expert attention.”

Salma warned that the morbidity and mortality burdens linked to maternal healthcare and pregnancy-related conditions were still on the increase, weakening the health service delivery system in the country.

“In the integrated system that we are promoting, we aspire to ensure that as soon as a pregnant woman visits a healthcare facility, the quality and level of care she requires to deliver a healthy child is assured, including payment for services she would receive, ensuring that she is covered under one form of health insurance or the other,” she added.