The 25 local government chairmen in Delta State have been advised to employ health workers in order to reduce their shortages at the various health centres.
Director of Planning, Research, and Statistics at the Delta State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Eboka Charles, speaking in Asaba at the meeting between Civil Society in Malaria Control, Immunisation and Nutrition (ACOMIN), and the state government, civil society and others, urged local government chairmen to employ nurses to ensure people get good services in their various local government areas.
He lauded ACOMIN for its immense contribution to the improvement of healthcare centres and its battle to eradicate malaria in the state.
“We have been emphasizing the need for them to employ the services of qualified nurses at healthcare centres, which is the duty of the local government authority,” he said.
Earlier during his address, state chairman of ACOMIN, Mr. Gregory Sifo, revealed that there is still a lot to be achieved despite successes recorded in uplifting the standards of primary healthcare centers across the three senatorial districts of the state.
He called for communities to continue to take ownership of projects executed in their domain, stating that there would be no use of the projects without the people.
The state malaria programme manager, Dr Julie Aniah appreciated ACOMIN for its timely dissemination of information on issues that have been beneficial in its bid to eradicate malaria.
While giving his brief on the activities of ACOMIN on the Global Fund Malaria-Led Monitoring Project in the state, the state programme officer of ACOMIN, Mr. Austin Uwas identified buildings, power shortages and inadequate water supply as issues that need to be addressed to help bolster the effectiveness of primary health centers in tackling malaria.
He urged the government at all levels to prioritize healthcare infrastructure in their budgets, adding that comprehensive policies should be implemented to ensure regular maintenance of healthcare infrastructure and timely replacement of outdated medical devices.