By Asmau Ahmad
The Federal Government of Nigeria has expressed determination to revitalise Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) in every ward across the country, in a bid to deliver quality healthcare services to Nigerians.
Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Faisal Shuaibu made this known to newsmen on Monday in Ibadan, Oyo State.
He said that Federal Government has renovated over four thousand PHCs in the last four years of President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration, adding that government would revitalise the PHCs.
Dr Shuaib said government would also ensure that health workers embark on periodic training so as to have capacity to deliver quality healthcare services to Nigerians.
“Federal Government has renovated over four thousand PHCs in the last four years of President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration. We will revitalise the PHCs.
“We will ensure that health workers embark on periodic training so as to have capacity to deliver quality healthcare services to Nigerians.
“We are doing better than how it was few years ago; our ambition is to have at least one functional PHC per political ward across the country,” he said.
The executive director added that no matter the huge amount expended on buildings in the health sector, it could not be enough, except revitalising the PHCs.
Shuaibu said that the PHCs would be revitalised by recruiting well trained health workers, better pay for workers, security and putting in place infrastructure.
He said healthcare of Nigerians was the priority, adding that their effort was to ensure Nigerians were well treated with dignity and compassion whenever they access the facilities.
Shuaibu said that Nigerians must be respected, given medication and managed well to recover from their illness.”
He decried shortage of health workers in PHCs across the nation, urging state governors to increase numbers of health workers in PHCs for adequate primary healthcare delivery system.
Shuaibu said that there was need for adequate human resources to have well trained and respectful personnel to attend to people at various health centres.
He said they needed to improve the quality of healthcare in the PHCs, adding that this was the reason why they were working with the state governors, commissioners and traditional rulers.
