Efio-Ita Nyok|22 April 2016|6:37am
In her 18 April 2016 address as CRS Commissioner for Health, Dr. Mrs. Inyang Asibong, during the the Flag Off of Maternal and Child Health Campaign by Her Excellency, the Wife Of the President, Aisha Buhari, revealed that obstetric hemorrhage still remained the most prevalent cause of maternal mortality in the state. In her remarks, 'With 75.6% of pregnant women in the state attending at least one antenatal visit, only 34.8% are attended to by skilled birth attendants when in labor, and obstetrics hemorrhage remaining the most common cause of maternal mortality, has made maternal, newborn and child health a major source of concern for the administration of His Excellency Gov Benedict Ayade'.
With this dismal picture painted, the Honourable Commissioner for Health observed that the state government's commitment in this direction would be pivotal to ensuring success of maternal and child health services and guaranteeing that they translate to quantifiable improvement in maternal and child health indices.
In the bid to totally eradicate or considerably ameliorate the already highlighted challenge, Commissioner Asibong explained that her establishment, namely, the Ministry of Health, is committed to 'sustained training of health workers/TBAs in basic Midwifery skills, establishment of viable health management information system, provision of drugs with functional drugs revolving mechanism, monitoring and supervision of the health facility, ensuring community participation and sustaining engagement with donors, implementing partners and other fora to identify challenges to implementing maternal and child health interventions in a timely manner and preferring concrete practical solutions'.
She further highlighted the fact that the newly created Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency from the erstwhile Department of Community and Primary Health Care by Sen. Prof. Ben Ayade, offer prospects for what she referred to as 'a better integrated management structure for primary health care, making the system more efficient and tailored to the needs of families and communities across the state'.
Asibong also noted that the Cross River State's Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (RMNCH) Strategy, in addition to the already existing state-owned Free Health Care Services for Women and Children as supported by donor agencies like Pathfinder, Fhi 360, Society for Family Health, WHO among others are geared towards the improvement of health care. She submitted that with all these health infrastructures in place in the state, 'the future is indeed bright for women and children in our paradise state'.
Efio-Ita Nyok
Is a Blogger & the Editor of Negroid Haven
