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In spite yearly budgetary allocation to the health sector in
Jigawa, especially for the upgrade of primary healthcare centres, many of the
health facilities are in terrible state of decay.
Statistics made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN),
by Mr Bayoro Kyamba, Director, Planning, Research and Statistics, Jigawa
Ministry of Health, showed steady release of funds to the Ministry.
The statistics released by the Director, Planning, Research and
Statistics, covered 2015 to 2019.
The state’s budget in 2015 was N99. 550 billion, out of this,
N11.965billion was appropriated to health sector, while N11. 960 billion was
released.
In 2016, the size of the state’s budget was N137.230 billion,
while N15. 741 billion was appropriated to health sector and N11. 971 billion
released to the ministry of health.
For 2017, the budget was N127.870 billion, while N16. 450billion
was appropriated to health sector and N12. 386 billion released to the ministry
of health.
The 2018 appropriation was N138.67 billion, while N6.7 billion
was earmarked for capital investments in the health sector.
In 2019, the state’s budget was N157.54 billion, 13 per cent of
the total proposed budget was earmarked for the health sector.
This consisted of N10.6 billion for recurrent expenditure and
N9.4 billion for capital investments, while N2.8 billion was allocated to
primary healthcare and maternal programmes.
However, checks from some of the local government areas, showed
that in spite the yearly allocations, healthcare facilities, were in state of
disrepair.
Mr Shapiu Saidu, the Officer in Charge (OIC) of primary
healthcare centre, Tsirme village, in Kiyawa Local Government Area, told NAN
that the centre was built over 30 years ago.
NAN reports that Jigawa was carved out from Kano State by the
then Military Head of State, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida in 1991.
Saidu said that the village primary healthcare centre needed a
befitting structure, adding that “even if we don’t have new one, this one
should be reconstructed to serve the people.”
The OIC said that about 834 general patients visited the centre
in October, while 454 were male and 380 female.
According to him, in September, 782 visited the centre and out
of this, 230 were male and 552 female.
Saidu said that the centre has only three workers, adding that this has put a
huge burden on him and the other two.
“We need laboratory equipment and health personnel, this will
improve our work, we only have three staff, we don’t even have Community Health
Extension Workers (CHEW) and Junior Community Health Extension Worker (JCHEW).
“We also need laboratory technician, the government should
supply us medical facilities, you can see that the roofs have been blown off,
we need equipment to safeguard our vaccines,” he stated.
However, when NAN correspondent visited Jaudi primary healthcare
centre, no worker was around as at 8:30 a.m.
Most of the workers were said to have gone to Dutse, the state
capital for the weekend.
Efforts by the security man at the centre to call one of the
staff who lived around the area were abortive, as she was said to have also
gone to Dutse, the state capital.
Some of the services the centre claimed to render are: Out
Patients Diagnosis (OPD), Immunisation, Antenatal care, Referral System/Out
Reach.
It also includes: Drug Revolving Fund (DRF), Minor Surgery,
Health Education, Growth Monitoring and Nutrition Promotion,Family Planning,
among others.
The building inaugurated on March 23, 2017 by then Gov. Muhammad
Badaru, was in bad shape due to poor maintenance.
When NAN called Mr Abubakar Bello, the Officer in Charge (OIC),
he said he was in Dutse.
Also at Garkon village healthcare centre in Andaza Local
Government Area, it was under lock when NAN correspondent visited.
The windows were left opened, and a view from outside showed
that the inside was replete with ramshackle facilities.
A man who identified himself simply as Suleiman was approached
for comment on the status of the centre; he stated that the people manning it
hardly come on weekends.
Asked if in case of emergency what the villagers would do.
Suleiman said they would call any of the staff on phone to
attend to the patients.
He stressed the need to deploy more manpower to the area as well
as encourage the already existing workers.
However, at Aujara, in Jahun Local Government Area, there was
large turnout of patients, while medical personnel were around to attend to
them.
Mr Shehu Muhammed, the Officer in Charge (OIC) said that the
centre has 19 workers, plus a corps member, who is a medical doctor.
He said that the centre has high patronage, adding that the
centre needed equipment and other facilities to cope with the surge.
According to him, there is high number of attendees, so we need
infrastructure, equipment, drugs as our drug are not enough.
“Our maternity side is very small, we need a bigger one to
accommodate patients because as at now we only have four beds at the maternity
ward and two in labour room,” he stated.
Muhammed said that the centre usually had between 150 to 160
deliveries monthly, adding that the large number made it imperative to have
more beds and a bigger delivery room.
According to him, the state government gives N10, 000 monthly
overhead to the centre.
On the record of patients that visited the centre for the month
of August and September, the OIC stated that 5,638 was the general figure for
August while 6,339 was recorded in September.
“For the month of August, the number of male that visited the
centre is 2,658, while female is 2,980, for September, male, 2,973 and female
3,766,” he said.
Dr Abba Umar, Jigawa Commissioner for Health, who commented on
the state of primary healthcare centres across the state and other sundry
issues, said government was aware that it has a number of dilapidated
facilities at some primary healthcare centres.
He said that some of them were included in the budget for
upgrade.
According to him, before the end of the year, most of these
facilities will be fixed.
The commissioner stated that the policy thrust of the state
government on health was to ensure that every ward in the state has functional
primary healthcare centre.
“We met some primary healthcare and clinics centres on ground,
they were many that were dilapidated when we came in, and so we started the
process of improving the facilities, renovating them to ensure that they are
habitable.
“We have done so many of them, and then we also said that every
ward that does not have one functional primary healthcare centre, we construct
one, so we constructed additional 87.
“And that the last batch was 25 which were constructed this year
and we are just about to open up those 25.’’
He acknowledged that there was shortage of manpower at the primary healthcare
centres, stating that the government would address the issue.
According to him, there are challenges on our human resources,
but we are doing all we can to ensure we solve that particular problem.
“We recruited 600 additional primary healthcare workers and
posted them to various facilities to ensure that we bridge the manpower gap at
that particular level.’’
He said that there was increase in the number of women that
access facilities for antenatal care, and women who delivered on the
facilities.
He said that this was as a result of favourable government
policy, of releasing N75million monthly to the Ministry of Health for free
maternal and child health.
“So every woman that gets pregnant should have free facilities
until delivery, and any child that is under five have free services.
“This has helped in increasing access to the facilities and has
also helped in maternal and child mortality.’’
Umar said that the state got $1.6 million World Bank Save One Million Lives
grant, adding that part of the money had already been received.
According to him, the state government will use the money to
continue to improve the health sector.
Mr Yakubu Auyo, Director, Primary Healthcare Development Agency
(PHDA), said that from 2020, the local government councils would exclusively
run the primary healthcare centres.
He said that the budget for the primary healthcare centres would
be decided by the local governments without the state’s input, adding that the
state would only assume a supervisory role.
With close monitoring and supervision, the allocations to the
health sector will translate to improved services.
. By Femi Ogunshola, News
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