Health
House’ll continue to prioritize healthcare – Gbajabiamila
The Speaker of the House of Representatives Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila has assured that the 9th House would continue to prioritize the health sector with a view to ensuring better service delivery for Nigerians.
Part of the measures, the Speaker said, is that the House would look at the issue of the outstanding allowances of the Nigerian health workers.
Addressing a delegation of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) led by its president, Prof. Innocent Ujah, who paid him a courtesy call in his office on Wednesday, the Speaker also assured that the House would fast-track the legislative process on a bill to repeal and reenact the Nigeria Medical and Dental Council Act.
“Healthcare is one of the major areas of focus of the 9th House Legislative Agenda. We will continue to stand with you and anything that will help our country move forward. You can’t talk about nation-building without getting your healthcare delivery right.
“Just be rest assured that you have in this institution a friend. We will work with you. I must commend you that under the difficult terrain you work in, you’re still able to do your job,” he said.
The Speaker also supported the idea of a bank for the health sector as suggested by the NMA president, saying the House would look into it.
“We’ll like to explore the idea of a health bank further. We’ll work with our doctors in the House to know how we can go about it. If you can give us a little synopsis of it, we’ll work with it.”
He said the House would look at the suggestion to review the retirement age for medical doctors and other health workers.
“On the increase in budget allocation, I believe it has been increased to some extent. I don’t know the exact figure right now, but we’ll look at it. If there’s need to review it further, we’ll do that.”
Against insinuations in some quarters that the health sector has the least budget of about N43 billion, Gbajabiamila said the sector gets over N1 trillion budgetary allocation.
Earlier, the NMA President, Prof. Ujah, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of the Federal University of Health Sciences, Otukpo, said the visit was to strengthen the relationship between the Speaker’s office and the association.
He pleaded with the Speaker for the House to come up with good legislation for the health sector; enhance the remuneration and allowances of medical personnel; ensure new retirement age of consultants at 70 and others at 65; improve funding and budgetary allocation for the sector as well as establish a bank for health as in the case of agriculture and industry.
On his part, the chairman of the House Committee on Healthcare Services, Rep. Tanko Yusuf Sununu, a medical doctor, thanked the Speaker for all his interventions in the sector and said the NMA team was on a thank-you visit.
He then presented an award of excellence given to the Speaker by the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) at its Annual General Meeting held recently.
The Federal Government has facilitated the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the National Hospital and four private institutions to enhance the capacity of the healthcare workforce.
The participating institutions include Nile University, Cosmopolitan University, Yangongwo College of Nursing Sciences, and Concerned Medix Foundation.
This was disclosed in a statement signed by the Ministry’s Deputy Director of Information and Public Relations, Mr. Alaba Balogun on Friday.
Alaba revealed that during the signing ceremony, the Coordinating Minister of Health & Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, emphasized that the MoU aligns with the administration’s policy to expand training capacities.
Prof. Pate further highlighted that this initiative reflects President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s commitment to increasing the training of health workers, addressing workforce gaps, and maintaining professional standards through the Regulatory and Professional Schools Division of the Hospital Services Department of the Ministry.
He stressed the government’s responsibility to tackle multiple challenges, including infrastructure, equipment, and human capital development, noting that Nigerian health workers are highly sought after due to their excellent training.
“Thankfully, because they are well-trained, we are very proud of them. If we weren’t training them, they wouldn’t have been attractive to other countries.
“Unfortunately, that has implications on the service delivery at home. So as a government, we took a progressive stance to say, look, let’s train more.
“So that even if those who are trained leave, some will stay. And even those who have gone away might come back to serve. And, that is the driving force behind this policy approval by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” the Coordinating Minister pointed out.
Prof. Pate also underscored the crucial role of the private sector in achieving the government’s objectives, noting that Nigeria’s healthcare system operates as a mix of public and private institutions.
“So, the private sector has a space, and I am very pleased that you have joined hands with the National Hospital to be able to really see how the capabilities of the hospital can help you train more clinicians”, he said.
Speaking at the event, the Chief Medical Director of the National Hospital, Prof. Raji Mahmud, commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for prioritizing improvements in the healthcare system.
He affirmed that the collaboration and signing of the MoU between the National Hospital and private institutions would significantly expand healthcare workforce training.
Prof. Mahmud further noted that three out of the four institutions are primarily training centers focused on medical and nursing education in partnership with the National Hospital, Abuja.
In a bid to enhance medical care for Nigerians, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed six new Chief Medical Directors (CMDs) for Federal Hospitals across the country.
Among those appointed is Dr. Ikrama Hassan, who will now serve as the Chief Medical Director of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Lafia, Nasarawa State. Dr. Hassan, a seasoned consultant physician, previously served as the Medical Director of Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital before its elevation to a teaching hospital.
The full list of newly appointed CMDs includes:
Prof. Olusegun Sylvester Ojo – Federal Teaching Hospital, Akure, Ondo State.
Prof. Yusuf Mohammed Abdullahi (Reappointed) – Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe.
Dr. Dauda Abubakar Katagum – Federal Teaching Hospital, Azare, Bauchi State.
Dr. Ikrama Hassan – Federal Teaching Hospital, Lafia, Nasarawa State.
Dr. Ali Mohammed Ramat – National Orthopedic Hospital, Maiduguri, Borno State.
Dr. Haruna Abubakar Shehu – Federal Medical Centre, Kafanchan, Kaduna State.
Each appointment is for a four-year term, effective from the date of assumption of duty.
President Tinubu congratulated the appointees, urging them to uphold the highest standards of professionalism and service delivery. He reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to improving medical infrastructure and ensuring quality healthcare access for all Nigerians.
Senator representing Kebbi South Senatorial District, Garba Maidoki has called for the establishment of a Federal Medical Centre to be situated in Zuru to cater for the health needs of the District and its environs.
The lawmaker in the 10th National Assembly made the call during a public hearing on the Bill to establish Federal Medical Centre in Zuru organized by the Senate Committee on Health.
In a memorandum presented at the hearing by the lawmaker, he explained that the aim is to provide tertiary healthcare facilities to the people of Zuru in Kebbi State in the North West Nigeria.
He further noted that the establishment of FMCs across the country was initiated by Decree No. 10 of 1985, with the aim of providing tertiary healthcare services.
According to him, the FMC Birnin Kebbi was established on June 6, 2000, and has since been upgraded to a University Teaching Hospital.
The lawmaker stated that the large population and the challenges faced in accessing healthcare services, necessitates the establishment of FMC in the state.
“In Birnin Kebbi, the state capital, the distance between Zuru Emirate and Birnin Kebbi is approximately 240 km, making it difficult for patients, especially children and pregnant women, to access secondary and tertiary healthcare facilities”, he lamented.
Senator Maidoki charged his colleagues and the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to support the bill, saying healthcare is a fundamental privilege expected from any government.
The lawmaker who is the sponsor of the bill told journalists during a chat that the Federal Medical Center, when established will not only cater for the tertiary healthcare needs of Kebbi State, but will also serve the adjoining states like Niger and Zamfara.
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