Group warns against commercialising health facilities in Ekiti
The Civil Society in Malaria Control, Immunization and Nutrition (ACOMIN) has warned against commercialising health facilities in Ekiti State.
The organisation, who spoke through Mr Olu Ogunrotimi, Executive Director, Environmental Development and Family Health Organization, EDFHO, gave the warning in Ado Ekiti, during an Advocacy Focused Media Meeting.
Newsmen reports that the meeting was designed to create awareness on the Covid-19 Response Mechanism and the Resilience and Sustainable System for Health (C19RM/RSSH) Grant.
The organisation expressed concern over the undue pressure being mounted on Primary Health facilities in Ekiti State by council chairmen to make money.
It describes the act as absurd and inimical to health care delivery at the grassroots called on Gov. Biodun Oyebanji to prevail on the council chairmen and LCDAs to stop such barbaric step.
The organisation said some Local Government Chairmen in the State have commercialised PHCs in their Local Government Areas, thereby reducing patronage and access to health care.
ACOMIN said the major purpose of primary health facilities is to provide health care support to vulnerable persons at the grassroots and not a business centre.
It added that most of the services rendered at the facilities are sponsored by donour agencies, such as Immunization, TB and Malaria.
The (C19RM/RSSH) Grant project is an initiative of Global Fund aimed at mobilizing communities and relevant stakeholders to support government, towards equipping the health facilities with necessary materials that could enhance health care delivery as well as create better awareness on community involvement.
Ogunrotimi particularly called on the Ministry of Heath to convey a state dialogue between PHCs and Development Workers for a share understanding of PHC roles.
He noted that the (C19RM/RSSH) project had yielded positive results as the Community Based Organizations in charge have been able to facilitate renovations of some health facilities across the state, employment of security guards to man them and provision of drugs and necessary equipment to support operations.
In his contribution, the Coordinator, TB Network in Ekiti State, Dr. Taiwo Benson called on government to employ more nurses to the facilities, saying less than 80 nurses are available in all the primary health facilities across the state which he said was too poor.
Benson appealed to well-meaning individuals, corporate bodies and institutions to support health care facilities in the state so as to enhance their service delivery.
Others who spoke appealed to communities to endeavor to patronize the primary health facilities in their areas and take ownership of the facilities to enable it serve them better.
