Health
ADSPHCDA adopt strategies to improve health care delivery
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ADSPHCDA adopt strategies to improve health care delivery
From Umar Dankano, Yola.
The Adamawa State Primary Health Care Development Agency (ADSPHCDA) has repositioned the primary health care (PHC) with a view to improving access to routine services including; immunization, maternal child care, antenatal care, family planning and child welfare clinics.
Executive chairman of the Agency, Dr.Suleiman Saidu Bashir made the disclosure at a media breakfast session /roundtable on Primary Health Care service delivery and utilization in the state stressing that the PHC remains the bedrock of the health system.
Bashir applauded the roles being played by the media in shaping public discourse and Influencing community behaviour through news reportage calling on more partnership with the media for adequate awareness.
Bashir also highlighted some of the challenges facing the Agency’s activities including ; low health-seeking behavior in some communities, inadequate utilization of available services and health misinformation among others.
Declaring that “nutrition must be our highest priority in Adamawa State,” Dr. Bashir expressed concern over the alarming levels of malnutrition, particularly among children in high-risk local government areas.
He pointed out that many of these children are not getting the nutrients necessary to develop and thrive noting
that the agency is partnering with the Child Nutrition Fund (CNF) to procure Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) but admitted that the coverage remains insufficient.
The chairman called for increased investment in nutrition interventions and stronger media support to raise awareness.
Also speaking, the chief of field office, UNICEF Bauchi field office, Dr. Nuhzat Rafique emphasized the importance of World Breastfeeding Week especially considering the fact that many children suffer from chronic malnutrition in the state which made it difficult for them to achieve future potentials
She noted that the situation poses a grave concern for the future of the state.
Rafique stressed that maternal and child health cannot be addressed through a single intervention. “It is a multi-sectoral approach,” she said, highlighting the roles of nutrition, health, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH).
She emphasized the importance of early and exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, routine immunization, and quality nutrition as the foundation for a child’s physical and mental development.
She also raised the alarm over the impact of climate change, describing it as a looming disaster that requires urgent attention. “We have to be conscious of what we feed our children, how we protect them, and the kind of environment we are raising them in,” she added.
