TOWARDS IMPROVED HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT IN ABIA; GOVERNMENT CHARGES HEALTH WORKERS.

#AbiaOnline
The newly inaugurated members Abia State Basic Health Care Provision Fund (ABHCPF) have been charged to support the government of Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu to advance the frontiers of better health for Abians by contributing their quota through steering committee aright.
The honourable commissioner for health, Dr. John Ahukannah made this call earlier this week while inaugurating the committee at the headquarter of the Abia State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (A parastatal of the state ministry of health), in Umuahia.
Dr. Ahukannah noted that already, guidelines for the BHCPF to run have been developed in the State while the operational manual for program implementation is currently being developed. According to the commissioner “to ensure the right implementation, structures are in place, the federal ministry of health has decided to pilot the BHCPF in 2017”.
Continuing, he said, “recognizing the need to demonstrate program effectiveness and also to set up necessary structures for implementation, the BHCPF will be implemented as a pilot program for an initial period of 12 months in the states which Abia is one of them”.
He also maintained that “the Abia State was selected following a review of the State’s readiness for the programs in order to ensure effective and quality implementation of the BHCPF pilot scheme in the Abia, hence the necessity to constitute a steering committee whose members are your good selves”.
The commissioner, while thanking the Governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu for the successful hosting of the 59th National Council on Health meeting held few months ago in the State and the payment of N100m health counterpart funds which one of its fruits is the selection of Abia State for the pilot programme of BHCPF said the BHCPF steering committee will be convened quarterly on the approval of the honourable commissioner for health as the chairman and will listen to presentations in progress in the implementation of the project on the two tracks, by the executive Secretaries of Abia State primary healthcare development agency (SPHCDA) and Abia State health insurance agency (SHIA).
He noted that the desk officer of the BHCPF will serve as the secretary of the steering committee.
Reacting, the Executive Secretary, Abia State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Chukwuemeka Oluoha charged the committee to be hardworking and dedicated to duty. According to him “the basic healthcare provision fund is to ensure that our primary healthcare system works and called on all hands be on deck to make it a big success”.
Also the special adviser to the Abia State Governor on health and a member of the steering committee, Dr Ikechukwu Nwakebe thanked the honourable commissioner for finding him worthy enough to be a member of the committee and promised to put in his best to ensure a quality result.
Present during the inauguration includes the Abia State commissioner of health, Dr. John Ahukannah, the permanent Secretary ministry of health, Mr Nkwachukwu Agomuoh, the Permanent Secretary, ministry of finance, Elder B.O. Ogbonna and heads of departments/agencies of the health ministry.sea