USAID IHP donates Medical Equipments worth Millions to Ebonyi
By Chinwe Imo-Eze Onwosi
The United States Agency for International Development, USAID, through its Integrated Health Program, IHP, has donated Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health training equipment worth millions of naira to Ebonyi state.
Handing over the items to the state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Daniel Umezurike, in Abakaliki, on Friday, 27th August, 2021, the coordinator of USAID IHP, Dr Gladys Olisaeke said the donation was made to improve quality of health care in Ebonyi state.
The items include Sister U, Mama Natalie, Mama U, Mama breast, Neo Natalie, premier Natalie, Upright newborn (bag mask), deep contraceptive implant & insertion kit, implant insertion & removal kits, stainless tablespoon, stainless bowl-36cm, MUAC strip/tape for the child, PPIUD kits, Interval IUD kits MEC (Medical Eligibility Criteria) Wheel and bags.
Dr Olisaeke said the equipments would be distributed to one hundred and Seventy-one (171) PHC, and twenty-seven (27) private facilities cut across the thirteen council areas in the state totaling one hundred and ninety-eight (198) IHP supported facilities designated for the training.
She said the items would be used for the training of health officers in the areas of family planning, maternal and child care as she decried that Ebonyi had highest rate of maternal, child mortality and morbidity in Ebonyi compared to other states in the South-East.
According to her, “The mortality and morbidity for mothers and children are higher in Ebonyi compared to other South-East states.
” When you compare the statistics for women, for children, for adolescents, it is not as good as other states. So, this is why we are concentrating our work here; USAID in general because we have a lot of USAID funding, six projects in health,” she said.
Olisaeke explained that the IHP sponsored USAID project would focus on maternal; new born health, reproductive health and family planning including gender and child health.
She said that these areas fell under the integrated management of childhood illnesses, routine immunization and nutrition.
“We are focusing on maternal and newborn health, reproductive health and family planning including gender and child health and the child health comprises integrated management of childhood illnesses, routine immunization and nutrition.
“The cost of the training models which are those models we are presented will be used to train health workers and to provide health services.
“We have the books, they will be used in the training and they also refer to those manuals after the training when they are doing their work and they somehow forget.
“We have engaged three local organisations to lead the roll out of these trainings in the health facilities.
“We have the orchard; we have life helpers initiave leading the training for child health and Society for Obstetrics and Gynecologists in Nigeria, Ebonyi chapter.
“They are leading the maternal and newborn training in all those facilities we have mentioned,” Olisaeke added.
Meanwhile, Umezurike has commended the USAID IHP for the donation and assured that the equipment would be put into judicious use to serve the purpose.
He further assured state’s government commitment to providing the basic health care needs to the citizenry saying that state would ensure that the equipment would be safeguarded.
“We are going to ensure that the training is a huge success and again, let me on behalf of the governor and the good people of Ebonyi assure you that we will take every necessary step to protect the equipment,” Umezurike said.
