From Simon Utebor, Yenagoa
Bayelsa State Government is set to employ about 100 doctors and other health practitioners in the next couple of months.
It said the engagement is part of the measures to address manpower deficit in the health care system in rural areas.
Deputy Governor Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo disclosed this yesterday during a visit by the state chapter of the National Association of Government General Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMPD), to the Government House, Yenagoa.
Sen. Ewhrudjakpo, in a statement by his media aide, Mr. Doubara Atasi, said such doctors and health workers would be deployed to local governments where health care personnel were overstretched.
Ewhrudjakpo said: “The state government has taken a holistic look at the primary health care institutions with a view to strengthening them, as it is a gateway to health care delivery system.
“Once you overwhelm the primary health care system, then the secondary and tertiary health institutions become very vulnerable. So every effort must be made to strengthen health facilities at the primary level.
“In so doing, we will be able to prevent some of the diseases. I believe in the first two Ps of health care delivery: Promotion and Prevention. I don’t believe in creative and rehabilitative medicine because a stitch in time saves nine.
“I believe if we prevent diseases and promote good health care, there will be no need for people to have surgery or a labour that is obstructed or delayed that requires Caesarian Section because they would have taken all the measures they needed to take.
“To strengthen our health care delivery, we are going to employ about a 100 medical doctors in the next couple of months to make sure we have at least one doctor in each political ward. We have also recommended that some community health officers, nurses, midwives, health information management officers, mobilisers and those people called traditional birth attendants. But I call them unskilled birth attendants.”
He noted that the state government looked into the hierarchy of health care workers and recommended that unskilled birth attendants be integrated into the health care system, to improve health care indices of the state.
He said instead of undermining their services, two of such health workers should be attached to each primary health care facility where they would work under the direct supervision of trained medical and health officers, to enable them perform their duties efficiently and effectively.
Vice Chairman of the association, Dr. Akpesiri Evberin, who delivered the address on behalf of the Chairman, Dr. Kemepador Oputa, hailed the Governor Douye Diri administration for supporting programmes targeted at improving health care needs of the people.
Bayelsa State Government has urged the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF), to put into consideration, the peculiarities of the state while evaluating the needs and efforts being made to improve health care in the state.
Credit :The Nation.
