By Our Reporter
The Special Adviser to Governor Bassey Otu on health, Dr Ekpo Ekpo Bassey, has explained how the Governor’s pragmatic approach to the challenge of brain drain in the health sector was helping to reduce it to the barest minimum
Dr Bassey said this shortly after the just concluded 66th Regular Session of the National Council on Health (NCH) which held at the Calabar International Convention Centre (CICC).
The Special Adviser disclosed that in order to motivate medical professionals to focus on their jobs, the Gov Otu granted approval for the payment of Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) to doctors in the State which was a bone of contention for many years between doctors and successive administrations.
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While lauding the Governor for hosting the event, Dr Bassey said Far-reaching decisions were taken at the end of the NHC meeting, one of which was on improving the payment package for health workers.
“The Governor has prioritised the healthcare sector in the state. Besides the fact that he has made adequate budgetary provisions for the healthcare sector, he has gone ahead to grant releases for renovation, revitalisation and repositioning of the primary healthcare. As we speak, more than 82 primary healthcare facilities have been renovated in all the 18 local government areas in the state.
“That’s a step in the right direction. There’s no reason why doctors from Cross River State would wish to go to other States, federal government or even leave the country for greener pastures because the package is now going to be the same.
“By creating such an environment for doctors to have competitive senses. By innovating, revitalizing, equipping facilities, he has laid bare enough motivation for medical professional to focus on serving our people. I think that all these things put together would go a long way towards reducing the migration of medical professionals,” he stated.
On the NCH’s 66th Session, the two-time House of Assembly member lauded the Governor for hosting the event, nothing that far-reaching decisions were taken at the end of the NHC meeting, one of which was on improving the payment package for health workers.
He said, “The theme of this year’s National Council on Health was ‘Accelerating Universal Health Coverage Through Innovation, Resilience and Equity’. The sub-theme was ‘Health Workforce Development and Retention Strategy.’
“The theme took that trajectory because the government is aware that so many of our health workers had left for greener pastures, and is indeed a challenge to government.
“One of the things the Session deliberated on was to develop strategies that will discouraging health professionals from living the country to other countries” he stated.
He noted further that with the adoption of reforms aimed at strengthening primary healthcare, expanding health insurance and above all with N50 billion deployed to clear outstanding arrears owed health workers, the health sector was having its best of times.
The Special Adviser also lauded President Bola Tinubu for tackling headlong the challenges in the health sector, adding “The Renewed Hope Agenda for the sector is working well. The federal government has decided to provide more funding. That’s why you have been able to observe that the incessant strike actions by doctors and other health workers have reduced.
“The federal government has also been able to provide facilities and equipment at the tertiary healthcare facilities. If you go to University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), for instance, you will see the tremendous work that is being done in that facility. This is a thing that speaks for itself.
“And with the review of some policies on health, there is an improvement in health outcomes. Maternal and child mortality rates have reduced across the country. There is better improvement in health insurance coverage. Few years ago, only 3 percent of Nigerians were covered by health insurance but it is now up to 17 percent coverage. And this is an achievement.
“There is also an improvement in supervision. The government has also come up with an initiative where about 744 young Nigerians are engaged in what is called National Health Fellows whose responsibilities include to monitor, carry out assessments of performance in all the health facilities across all the LGAs in the country,” he stated.
