The Federal Ministry of Health has trained 40 healthcare workers across Kwara’s 16 local government areas, under the first phase of the Self-care initiative on sexual and reproductive health in Nigeria programme.
Speaking with newsmen on the sidelines of the training, Dr Kayode Afolabi, the Director of Reproductive Health, Federal Ministry of Health, explained that the training was to educate healthcare workers on their specific roles in maintaining and improving the health of Nigerians.
According to him, the Self-care initiative programme was a great opportunity for Nigerians to ensure good health, as it would afford action to preserve and improve one’s health.
Afolabi said that high quality self-care interventions served as an important alternative to achieving universal health coverage as people could maintain their health status outside of the usual health facility or health worker-based services.
He noted that Kwara, Ogun and Oyo states would be covered under the first phase of the programme which would eventually be extended to all states of the federation.
“Our expectations at the end of the advocacy and trainings is that citizens will be aware of their health, the knowledge of disease prevention and utilisation of healthcare facilities.
“We will have been able to create a link between family, healthcare workers and healthcare facilities across the country,” he said.
Earlier, in his address of welcome, Dr Raji Razaq, Kwara Commissioner for Health, said that the high maternal mortality was unacceptable and that self-care was an important step in achieving a reduction in the death of mothers and children.
Razaq, who was represented by Dr Oluwatosin Fakayode, Director of Public Health in the state Ministry of Health, disclosed that the state had been named among beneficiaries of the 2021 N10 billion health intervention programme of the Abdul Samad Rabiu Africa Initiative ”ASR Africa”.
Under the initiative, he explained, the state would receive the sum of N2.5 billion expanded grant dedicated to healthcare interventions from maternal and child health to health infrastructure, among others.
Also speaking, Dr Adewole Adefalu, the Country Coordinator of John Snow Inc., said that the training on Self-care for healthcare workers was meant to ensure that each individual was aware of their specific roles in maintaining and improving their health.
If people were to take control of their health, they would be in a better position to make better decisions as regards their health, he said.
He added that in order to prevent abuse of the Self-care method of family planning, guidelines were essential, as well as educating the people on self management, usage of medication and safety.
In her reaction, Mrs Segilola Mustapha, one of the trainees, said the programme was a good innovation that would help mothers to take good care of themselves and empower them in respect of their reproductive health.(NAN)
